Double the Plum!
by manga princess
Summary: Sequel to Twice the Plum! Adriana's at war...With Stephanie, Morelli and Ranger! They definitely won't be getting along. But 3 vs One? Not good odds. What's a girl to do? Get kidnapped and hook up with a sexy FTA? That could work.
1. Third Wheel

I'm back!!! And it's time to begin Volume Two of my Twice the Plum series!!!! Yay!!! Double the Plum! I've already got it planned out! Giggles Okay… so this is a sequel. Meaning you should read the first one first or else you'll be weird and stuff! Unless you don't mind spoilers. Now then… I'm going to begin.

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Dis: shakes head

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_Adriana_

Third wheel. It's a very common term. One I've heard a lot but never really put much thought into. Why? Because it never had to do much with me. Back when I was taken, everyone I knew was also taken. And when I got single, a lot of my friends were single. But then they got back into the couples game while I was still single. I didn't quite mind too much because they were actually considerate. I didn't have to see it rubbed in my face—accidentally or purposefully—every single damn time I was around them. It was just hand holding. As the most maybe a brief kiss. A peck. One that's so quick no one has time to see it. I never had to worry because I knew people who were reserved like that. Unlike the people in front of me right now.

My name is Adriana Elizabeth Plum. I am the cousin of one Stephanie Michelle Plum. I moved back to Jersey from Colorado a while ago and ended up becoming her roommate courtesy of our parents' orders. Currently though, we were not in her apartment. We were in the house of one Joseph Anthony Morelli. Stephanie's boyfriend. Kinda, sorta, in a way. We were staying there, living with him for various comfort reasons on her part. It's actually a nice house. Roomy and homey. There wouldn't really be an issue with me were it not for the fact that Joe and Steph are a rather "affectionate" couple. And now after I just got home to relax I ended up catching them making out on the fucking couch in the fucking living room.

"Oh for the love of crap!!!!" I snapped in annoyance, dropping my bags on the floor with a thud.

The love birds broke from their kissing/heavy petting to find me glaring heatedly at the two of them from the front door. Stephanie blushed and straightened herself up while Joseph focused his eyes back to the TV that was on keeping eyes off me and straightened himself up as well. Well, it's nice to know they know some shame.

"Adriana. You're back." Stephanie acknowledged.

I said nothing. Just glared daggers.

"You bought groceries." Joseph commented, looking at the bags next to me.

Still silent. Still glaring daggers.

After a brief moment of awkward silence mainly caused by me, I broke it.

"We need to talk. Kitchen. Now."

I scooped up the bags and walked purposefully into the kitchen, making as much noise as possible as I went. Stomping into the kitchen. Practically tossing the heavier things onto the counter in hopes that something might break. They met me in due time, Joseph prying a bag of ice from my hands before I violently threw it into the freezer. I figured if I tried grabbing something else, it would also be pried away. So with nothing in my hands, I crossed my arms and looked everywhere but at them as I leant into the counter.

"Adriana…" Stephanie began.

"Look." I said, cutting her off. "If I'm going to be stuck living here, the least you could do is cut out the PDA. Seriously. No one wants to come home to someone they know practically ripping each other's clothes off in the living room. Don't you have a bedroom for this anyway? Why aren't you in there? Away from my sight and mind? Honestly, if this keeps up maybe I should go back to the apartment. It might be dangerous but at least I won't have to witness any of that…"

"I'm sorry." Stephanie said, stopping me.

I looked back at her. "What? Are you apologizing?"

"I am. You're right. I know you're right. We were very inconsiderate and I'm sorry."

"It's okay…"

I smiled and she smiled. Then we both looked at Joe expectedly. He looked back at us curiously.

"Well?" Stephanie and I said.

"What?"

"Aren't you going to apologize?" Stephanie asked.

"Apologize?"

"Yes. Apologize. You need to apologize to Ana."

"You all ready apologized for us."

"No." I said. "She apologized for her. Not for you. _You_ need to apologize for you."

"Oh come on…" He complained.

"Say it."

"Ana."

"Say. It."

He sighed. "Fine. I'm sorry. We were inconsiderate of your feelings and that wasn't right. It was stupid and I'm sorry."

I paused thoughtfully. "I don't think you meant that."

"Adriana!"

"Well, I did have to make you."

"Of course I meant it."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Really?"

"Ana!"

"Okay, okay. I believe you."

We picked up the groceries and began putting them up.

"Good thing you guys apologized." I said.

"Why?" They asked me in unison.

"Because if you were mean enough not to be, I'd have to bring all our parents and grandparents over unexpectedly to visit after leaving you alone in the house. I'd love to imagine what they'd have to say. Especially Grandpa Bella."

Predictably, Joe and Stephie flinched and I couldn't stop my grin.

"Ugh. Why'd you have to get chummy with her?" Steph complained.

"Blame Joseph. He was the one who made her come over when I was sick. It's not my fault she warmed up to me."

About a month or so ago, I'd gotten sick. Really sick. And Joseph took it upon himself to take care of me. And when he wasn't around, he got his mother and of course, Grandma Bella to help. She was a very scary old lady who's had it in with Stephanie ever since her relationship with Joseph started because they have yet to get married. She didn't like Steph's relatives because we seemed to condone it. How did she end up liking me? I have no fucking idea. But hell, I wasn't complaining.

Stephanie glared at Joseph after my comment and I found myself giggling. We finished up packing the groceries and dusting my hands off, I headed up to my room to deposit my stuff. When I came back down, they were on the couch and I looked at them curiously.

"What?" Joseph asked, noticing me.

"You're not gonna go… you know…?" I motioned up the stairs. "I mean… you aren't…you know…?" And I tapped the wall for emphasis. "Because you can if you want. I have headphones."

I could see Stephanie trying not to laugh with every fiber of her being as it registered what I was implying. Now Joseph really wasn't looking at me and I was pretty sure he was flushing pink.

"I'm fine." He said.

I looked at Stephanie and she nodded. She was fine too. Shrugging my shoulders, I went into the kitchen, grabbed some cookies and joined them in the living room.

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I'm gonna stop here! That's it for the first chapter! It's short, yes… But I couldn't think of anything else at the moment. And I wanna save the good stuff for later chapters. Stick around, if you'd so please!! Because I'll be working on it real soon. 

One more thing… REVIEW!


	2. Thoughts

Time to begin chapter 2 of Double the Plum! Thanks for the review, Peanuts! This chapter is for you! And I can't wait either! What will happen today? A visit from Adriana's friends… leading up to an interesting night later on. Stick around and you'll see what I mean!

**Spoiler:** I have recently read Plum Lovin' so there will be some mention of that in here if you have yet to read it.

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Disclaimer: It is not mine.

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_Stephanie_

About 2 hours had passed since Adriana had come home. After that mortifying incident of her walking in on the intimate moment between Morelli and me, I was glad to see that things were calmed down. Despite the fact that she was currently sitting in between us like we weren't to be trusted. Still, it was a nice moment having everyone sitting in the living room together peacefully but I had to admit, I was getting bored. Besides, I hadn't made it to work yet.

I stood up with a stretch and turned to my couch mates.

"I'm going to go check on the office and run a few errands right quick." I said. I looked at Ana. "You wanna come?"

She thought about it then shook her head. "Nah. I'm pooped. You go without me."

I nodded and gathered my things.

"Be careful." Morelli called to me as I went to the door.

"I will."

I got in my car, which was currently an SUV that I got from my sister Valerie for my Mini Cooper, and headed to the office. As I drove, I took this moment to think about my cousin. She was willingly staying by herself with Joseph Morelli. It was hard to believe that she used to despise him with every fiber of her being. I didn't think she was crazy about him yet… but at least she stopped with all the animosity. The heat from her angry glares was so palpable it was unnerving. Now her gaze was always warm and friendly. I smiled at the thought. This was a very good sign.

I parked the car at the bonds office and walked on in.

"Hey, you guys." I greeted.

"Hey girl!" Greeted Lula.

"So we have any new FTAs?" I asked Connie.

"Yep." She handed over two folders. "They should be pretty easy to handle since they're only average."

I looked the folders over and let out a relieved enough sigh. Maxine Heller: Grand Theft Auto and Andrew Stanton: Petty theft. These didn't look like too much trouble at all. I could take care of the last one in record time. The first one… she seemed to be more trouble. I might need some help. I put the folders into my pocketbook.

"Guess I'd better get started."

Vinnie's office door swung open. "Damn right, you better get started!" He yelled at me. "I'm dying over here. Lucille will kill me if I bring any soon."

Vincent Plum is my perverted, weasel of a cousin. And it just so happens he owns the Bail Bonds Agency that I work for, courtesy of blackmail. Lucille is his wife but we all knew Vinnie was referring to her father, Harry the Hammer. He didn't like when his precious daughter was upset or disappointed.

I rolled my eyes while Connie proceeded to search for the bug Vinnie planted which she then destroyed under the heel of her shoe.

"How about I come with you?" Lula suggested. "You could use some help and I don't have anything else to do."

I cocked my eyes to the filing then shrugged my shoulders. Technically, Lula was supposed to do the filing but she never did. Ever. The only reason we hired her because she was the only woman who wouldn't take harassment from Vinnie. After we hired a guy named Melvin, it didn't matter anymore because he did all the filing. With it being a weekend, he wasn't here today though.

"Sure, why not?" I replied. I could have used the company.

And thus we headed out, using Lula's car this time.

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_Adriana_

It was about a half hour since Stephanie headed off to work and not much was going on. I was still sharing the couch with Joseph. I had to admit I surprised myself. When I first moved here, I'd sit as far away from Joseph Morelli as humanly possible. Now I didn't mind being next to him. And that wasn't counting forcing myself between them on the couch so they couldn't do anything physical in my presence. I wondered how this happened. I wondered how long this would last. Shrugging my shoulders, I leaned on the arm on my side and looked at Joseph.

Part of me still wasn't over him and Stephanie being a couple more or less. So I was trying to figure out what she saw in him. Besides, it gave me something to do since due to a compromise over taking turns, Joe had the remote and he was watching sports. Which I despise because it's so damn boring. Looks? That could be it. I mean, he definitely had looks. The Morelli family was known for their looks. His body? That could also be it. I skimmed his arms. Lots of muscle there. You can't say no to muscle. His personality? Hmm… That was iffy. Everyone knew the Morelli men were known for their crappy personalities. Drinking, fighting and cheating on their women. Hell, Joseph was pretty much on his way there from childhood what with the choo-choo game he talked Stephanie into playing. And then there was stealing her virginity and then poofing away never to be seen again. But he seemed different now. More…what's the word…? Mature. That was it. I didn't think I'd be calling him mature but there you go. Was it the military? They are supposed to change you. On the other hand, he could be worse. All that extra testosterone. And who says mature men can't stray? But… I wasn't with him. So I guess I shouldn't worry.

"Hey Joseph." I began.

He looked at me. "Yeah?"

"You do know that if you ever hurt Stephanie in any way, you'll die, right?"

His expression didn't change but neither did mine. We just looked at each other with neutral expressions.

"I know." He finally said.

"Good." I smiled. "Now when can I watch TV?"

"You are watching TV."

I narrowed my eyes. "You know what I mean."

"When I'm done."

"When will you be done?"

"When the game is over."

"When is that?"

"I don't know."

This time, I felt my eye twitch. Closing my eyes, I stood up. "I'm going upstairs to read for a while. Call me when you're done."

He nodded. The game was back on so he was distracted. I sighed and shook my head. Men.

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Enough with this chapter!! That's it with #2. Time for me to get to work on the 3rd chapter! Stay tuned! And review me!!! 


	3. 3rd Wheel Part 2: Decision

I'm making my up over to chapter 3!!! Yay!!! I've never been so excited to get to a new chappie! This means my muse is working over time. Ha! Okay. Let's have some fun!!!

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_Adriana_

I woke up with a screech from my bed. Gasping as hard as I could, I looked back at the book that I was reading, groaned and cursed then slammed the book shut. This was awful. Worse than awful. How could I have a dream like that?! How? Why?! This just wasn't fair. But that wasn't the kicker. Oh no. Things got embarrassingly worse when my bedroom door opened and Joseph was there. Without his shirt. I almost died right there.

"Adriana!" He cried running over to me. Dear God, why didn't he just stay put? "What happened?"

"N-nothing." I answered suddenly glad I had the pillow over my head. "I'm fine. Just had a light nap that wasn't so nice."

He sat on the bed next to me. "You had a nightmare?" He asked.

Oh… you'd better believe it was a nightmare. "Yeah. Silly, huh?" I'd brought the pillow down some so I could look at him.

Joseph laughed. "Everyone has nightmares sometimes. So what was yours about?"

"Um…" Like hell I was gonna tell him that! "I forgot. But it was really scary."

"Hm."

"I'm fine though, if you're worried. But I don't think I'll go back to sleep for a moment. By the way… how come you're not wearing a shirt?"

I had to know. It was driving me insane.

"Oh. I was heading to the shower when I heard you yell. Almost forgot about it." He got up. "Since you won't be going to sleep any time soon, you can watch TV now."

"Great. Thanks."

Joseph headed out and I collapsed on the bed with another groan. I looked at the book I had been reading and thought back to Joe without his shirt. And then the dream came back full force causing me to throw the book off the bed.

A sex dream. I had a sex dream about Joseph Morelli. My cousin's boyfriend!!! This was so wrong on so many fucking levels that it wasn't even funny. I gritted my teeth in frustration. God damn sex deprived mind forcing these thoughts into my head. Something tells me that living in this house had just gotten harder…

I was already downstairs watching TV when Stephanie came back to visit. Well, actually, I had dozed off on the couch and was just woken up by the sound of the door opening.

"Oh, Steph. You're home." I acknowledged sleepily.

"Yeah." She replied, sitting down next to me. "Taking a nap? You're not sick again, are you?"

I laughed. "No. I'm good. I just stayed up most of the night last night and I'm a little exhausted."

"Well, you should go to bed."

"Yeah… So how was work and stuff?"

"It was fine. I turned in a bond today with little trouble."

"Oh yeah? What they'd do?"

"Petty theft of a grocery store if you can believe it."

I giggled. "That must have been nice. That the only one?"

"That I got around to, yeah."

"You mean there's another? Can I see?"

"Knock yourself out."

Stephanie handed me the file and I looked it over.

"Grand Theft Auto? Wow!"

"Tell me about it."

"You sure Ranger shouldn't get this one? Granted, the perp is a woman but still…"

"She's not high enough."

"Think you might need help?"

She paused thoughtfully. "Maybe. I'll let you know."

I handed back the file and stood up at the exact moment Joseph came downstairs.

"Welcome back." He greeted.

"Hey." She said.

I discreetly slipped up the stairs and went to my room. Did they see me? Don't know, don't care. As long as they didn't stop me, I was fine.

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The next morning, I woke up earlier than usual. By at least an hour. As I got up, I realized that I hadn't taken my nightly shower last night so I figured I'd take one now. When I got to the bathroom, the door was locked. I knocked to see who is inside. 

"Who is it?" I heard my cousin yell.

"It's me!" I called back.

"Be out in a second."

"Okay!"

I headed to my room to choose my outfit. Digging out a tank top and some khaki pants, I headed into the hall to wait. A few moments later, the door opened and my cousin walked out. I was just about to walk over when I saw **him**. Joseph Morelli right behind her. Without thinking, I dived back into my current bedroom at top fucking speed. Leaning against the wall, I took a deep breath to calm myself and thought back to what I saw. Joe and Stephanie were in the bathroom at the same time. At the same time. I wasn't naïve people. There was only one fucking reason two people of the opposite sex would be in the bathroom at the same fucking time. I felt grossed out and pissed off all at once. This shouldn't surprise me but damn it! I used that bathroom! I took showers in that tub!! Well, it wouldn't happen anymore. No way. No how. Not ever. I swiftly got dressed, got my purse and rushed downstairs. If they asked what the hurry was, I'd just make something up. Or try it anyway. I found the lovely couple in the kitchen but refused to look at them. If I did, they'd know something was up and the last thing I needed was for all of us to deal with what I knew that they did. I just gave a wave, told them I had to go and I'd see them later.

"Wait a minute, what about your shower?" Stephanie asked me, perceptive little…

"Changed my mind!" I called back, yanking open the front door.

After that, I tossed the subtlety away as I ran to my car. Hopping in, I started the engine, backed up and drove like Satan was on my ass.

10 miles later, I was parked at the bakery, eating my fill of muffins and silently fuming. What was I gonna do? I couldn't skip showers all the time. But there was no way in hell I'd get in that bathtub. Ever. What I needed was another bathroom to use. Problem was which one? The apartment would be nice... however, it probably wouldn't be hard for them to figure out I was going there and then they'd want to know why since it's still not entirely safe and they'd freak. I'd hate to have to like. I was bad at lying. My parents' was out of the question. They'd pester me and my mother already had a clue that I was uncomfortable. She'd bring it up. I know she would! And if my dad found out I was uncomfortable… I think I'd die. Don't get me started on my grandpa. My aunt and uncle was also a no no for similar reasons. Most major was that they were Stephanie's parents. And our grandmother happened to know Joseph's Grandma Bella, who disapproved of their relationship of "sin." Grandma Mazur had a big mouth so if she knew, chances were so would Bella. And if Bella knew… I really didn't want to be responsible for my cousin getting the Eye. Who else? And then he came to mind. But I was even less sure about them than anyone. And this would be so embarrassing! On the other hand… his bathroom was probably germ free… I decided to take the risk. Taking out my cell phone, I quickly dialed willing myself not to chicken out at the last instant.

"Yo." Answered the familiar voice.

For the briefest of instances, I froze. What the hell was I thinking?!

"Adriana? Is that you?"

My mouth dropped open even though it was just a phone. How the hell did he know it was me?! That was my answer of all things to say.

"Caller Id."

"Oh…" Duh!!

"What's wrong?"

"N-nothing. It's just… well I have something to ask you."

"Go ahead."

"It's a favor."

"I'm listening."

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That takes care of chapter 3! One step at a time. One step at a time. I'll be working on chapter 4 soon. How soon? Right after I place this one on the web. Reviews are appreciated! That is all. 


	4. The Batcave! Shh! Secret

Here's the next chapter. This should be a lot longer. I look forward to it. What's in store? You'll have to read and see, won't you?

4 reviews!!! Yay!!!!! I hope I get more. ASAP. Now then… let's get going.

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Disclaimer: Not even.

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_Adriana_

It was silent on the phone. On both ends. I wasn't talking and neither was Ranger. Me? I was freaking out in so many ways it wasn't even funny. I'd asked the question. The infamous question. I took the risk. And now I was sitting in my car fidgeting. He must have thought I was insane now. Why else was he pausing so damn long?!

"Okay."

"Huh?" I had completely tuned out in my thoughts and jumped in shock when I suddenly heard him speak.

"You can use my shower." He said.

I gaped at the phone despite the fact that he couldn't see me. "R-really?!"

"Yeah."

"Seriously?!"

I could tell he was smiling by then. "Yeah. When do you need it?"

I sighed in relief. "Um… now if possible? I skipped my night shower."

"Fine."

I sighed again. "Thanks! I owe you one!"

"You don't. It's fine."

We hung up then and I suddenly thought about what I'd said. The realization made me blush with embarrassment. I didn't know much about him but I knew about the times Stephanie repaid him. Lula kind of had a big mouth and it didn't take much to get her to spill the info. Hell, asking was usually all it took. Ack! He must not have wanted to make me uncomfortable. Too late for that. Oh well. If I kept my mouth shut, there shouldn't be much of an issue. Besides, he said I could use his shower!

I started the car and drove over to RangeMan. It didn't take long. Once I parked my car in the garage, I called him again.

"I'm in the garage now." I said. "Is it safe to come up?"

"Yeah. Come on up."

We disconnected and I headed inside, going through all the floors and such. I said hi to the other guys and went into the elevator. Digging into my pocketbook, I took out the special key. I was surprised he let me keep it. Granted, I forgot I had it when I left but I expected him to get it back. After a week or so and he still hadn't asked about it, I called him offering to get it back. That's when he told me to hold on to it in case I ever needed it again.

I took the elevator to the 7th floor and knocked on his door.

"It's open!" He called.

I walked inside to find him wandering in the kitchen. Without his damn shirt. My eyes widened in shock and I gulped. Okay, something was wrong. I had butterflies in my stomach and something hot just dropped below my stomach. What the hell was wrong with me?! If I'd been by myself, I would have cussed. As it was, I bit the inside of my cheek and absentmindedly slammed the door. He noticed me and walked over. I cocked an eyebrow at him in question. Did he forget I was coming?

"Just got out of the shower."

I realized this was true when I smelled the burst of Bulgari shower gel. Why did it have to smell so good?!

"Well," I started as I backed away from him as subtle as possible. "I'd better get mine done now."

"What's the hurry?" He asked as I turned away from him. I think I'd have died if he stepped in front of me.

"Shower, remember? That's the reason I came here. No need to impose or anything."

"You won't. I told you if you ever wanted or needed to come over, you had free reign as long as you called first. You did that so how about trying to relax. You look like I might kick you out if you make one mistake."

I gave an embarrassed laugh. He was right. I was acting antsy. Why? Because my hormones were scaring the fuck out of me. They were acting and reacting in various ways that they shouldn't have been acting. And I had no idea why. Okay, I might have had an idea but I wasn't saying it aloud.

"Well… I suppose I could use some food." I told him, planting myself in the kitchen. "I've only had muffins."

"What do you want?" He'd put a shirt on by now and I gave a silent prayer of thanks.

"What do you got?"

He gave a small list.

"I'll try some of those grapes. Favorite fruit."

Ranger went into the fridge and cabinet and handed me a bowl of seedless grapes. I started helping myself immediately as he sat down and helped himself to some juice.

"So what was wrong with Morelli's shower that you absolutely could not use it?"

I paused, thinking. I could tell him the truth… But that would be embarrassing. And also I didn't want to talk about sex in front of this man especially when it had to do with my cousin. "Um… it's dirty."

"It's dirty?" He repeated. "A shower?"

"Yeah. Filthy. Not that you can see it but there's so many horrible germs swimming in there."

"Wouldn't they be washed away?"

I shook my head. "They're not regular germs. They're… well…" Again I paused. The word that came to mind was cooties. There were sex cooties in the shower and I didn't want their sex cooties. But I couldn't tell him that. "Specialized." I finished.

"And why aren't your roommates afraid of the germs?"

"They're immune." I said without hesitation. Of course they were. It was their god damn sex germs!

"But you're not." It wasn't a question.

"Nope. I'm easily susceptible to the horrible germs and it'd be very bad if they got on me."

"And my shower doesn't have those germs."

"Nope. I'm positive. Look at this place. It's immaculate. Those germs couldn't possibly be here." And since he was currently acting as a one woman guy who only wanted my cousin that meant there hadn't and that there's no chance of any sex cooties being in that bathroom. Until Stephanie and Joseph broke up again. But that could be a long ways away.

I was saying this as calmly as I could and I was impressed with myself. But I knew I couldn't keep this up. I was crappy under pressure and any minute I'd start shaking like a leaf, which would definitely give me away and prove I was lying. Ranger stared at me for a moment and I could one of my legs start to vibrate. This guy was intimidation central. I bet he could interrogate the best without trying. Please stop looking at me!

He smiled. "Thanks for clearing that up."

I inwardly sighed. "No problem. I'm gonna get going now." I finished up my grapes, put them in the sink and headed to the bathroom.

* * *

_Stephanie_

I was filled with a nagging curiosity that was driving me nuts. I'd been like this ever since Adriana practically ran from the house this morning. She'd tried to make it subtle but I saw her sprint to the car and drive away tires screeching. She was definitely in a hurry. And I wanted to know why. Obviously, it had to do with me and Morelli. Adriana only acted weird when it had something to do with us but she didn't want to tell us. Like the time she found the box of condoms we'd been using in the kitchen and suddenly started eating take out everyday for a month except when she ate dinner at our relatives' houses and basically avoided the kitchen altogether. It took lots of work to finally get her to crack and we spent a good amount of time convincing her that we didn't do the deed in the kitchen and we'd never do so while we shared the same house. So I knew it definitely had something to do with that. But I was lost from that point. Nothing came to mind what would be driving her crazy. It wasn't worry about accidentally hearing us. She bought a radio and headphones for that so she was fine. So what else could there be?

I was still trying to figure things out when the door opened and my cousin in question stepped in. She was looking a lot more comfortable now and didn't try to run like a lunatic to her bedroom so I figured she must be feeling better.

"How was your day?" I asked.

"Pretty good." She told me. She dug into the fridge and hopped herself on the couch. "Oh! That reminds me. Since today is Saturday, my parents' are hosting a dinner again and they were wondering if you and Joseph would mind coming."

I looked at her. "Seriously?"

She nodded. "Yeah. My mom mentioned it last week. I think she really wants you to come."

"Well… I'll have to ask Morelli but I'd be glad to come."

"Great. It's at seven, just so you know."

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That takes care of this chapter. I figured I'd save the dinner for the next one. Seems better that way. Be a dear and review! Thank you kindly. 


	5. Dinner: Death by Mortification

**Double The Plum! Chapter 5!**

Disclaimer: My initials are not J.E.

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_Stephanie_

"Dinner at your aunt and uncle's place, huh?" Morelli asked me.

Morelli and I were in the bedroom getting dressed for the dinner in question. After the initial rest and relaxation when he finally got off work, Adriana had rushed to get ready reminding me about the invitation so I posed the question.

"Yep." I answered. "Think you can handle it?"

He smiled. "Can't be any worse than your folks, right?"

We finished up and headed downstairs where my cousin was waiting for us. She jumped to her feet when we were in view.

"You ready to go?" She asked.

We both said yes and without further or due we headed out to the car and piled into the front seat. Morelli at the wheel, me in the passenger side and Ana settled between us. I thought back to the times when Adriana always chose the back seat against sitting next to him and I smiled. Things were definitely better between them.

Like my parents, Adriana's parents lived in the Burg so that's where we went. Their house was also like my parents' except they weren't sharing it with anyone and the colors weren't so… unique. Just a plain white house with an empty yard save for a nice mailbox. We parked in front of the house where Aunt Cassandra was standing at the front door. She was definitely a Plum mother. I never got how they knew we'd be coming. We all exited the vehicle and Adriana ran forward to hug her mother while Morelli and I took our time getting there.

"Stephanie!" crooned my aunt. "Don't just stand there! Aren't you going to hug your aunt?"

I laughed. "Coming Aunt Cass."

After I did the hugging thing, she released me to get a look at Morelli. The way she was eyeing him reminded me very much like her daughter did when she was just getting used to the fact that we were together. It was making me worry.

"Joseph Anthony Morelli." My aunt acknowledged.

"Mrs. Plum." Morelli responded.

"My daughter tells me you're seeing my niece."

"I am."

"She also tells me that you're a different person than when you were younger."

Morelli and I both looked at Adriana, who was shuffling her feet modestly.

"I'd like to think I am." Morelli told Aunt Cass.

She smiled. "So would I. And I'm giving you the benefit of a doubt. Don't let the family down, Joseph." She looked at my cousin and me. "Now then, care to help set the table? Dinner is almost ready."

"We'll be there in a sec." I told her. As soon as she walked away, I looked at Ana. "You gave Joe compliments to your parents?" I asked. "That's really nice of you."

She shrugged. "Yeah well, I knew they'd be iffy what with the whole Choo-Choo thing when you were little and the bakery wall incident that basically spread like wildfire…"

I cut Morelli a look as had become a force of habit and he gave a sheepish grin also by force of habit.

"…So I thought it'd be best to make things easier. Besides, I'm living with you so I gotta make sure my folks are comfy with me living there. Lest they barge in uninvited and protectively whisk me away from you." Adriana finished.

I gave a laugh. Funny thing was, she was right. That was definitely the type of thing our relatives would do.

The three of us went inside and we women flocked to the dining room while the men gathered in the living room. I peeked out of the corner of my eye to see Morelli speak briefly with Uncle Lorenzo and Grandpa Marcelo before actually sitting down on the couch. The very fact that they made room for him was a wonderful sign.

"Say Joseph." Started my grandpa. "Is it true that you're a cop?"

Morelli smiled. "Yeah, it's true."

"So you use guns pretty often, don't you?"

"Yep."

"Do you have your gun with you now?"

"I'm not on duty so it's not with me now."

"Oh. Do you think you can bring it later so I can get a look at it. I'm thinking of buying my own gun and I wanna make sure it's good."

"Oh no, you don't!" exclaimed my aunt. "You are not getting a gun as long as you live here."

"But what if we need it? What if someone breaks in one day?"

"That's what policemen like Joseph Morelli are here for."

"Joseph can't be expected to be here like that. He's got other people to help. By the time he comes to our rescue, we could already be dead!"

Five minutes later, the table was set and everyone flocked to the rectangular table. Our family members sat on one side and we sat on the other. This time, I was in the middle with Morelli to my right and Adriana to my left. I couldn't help but note how much more roomy it was in this dining room compared to my parents.' Well, that was one good point for dinner over here. Aunt Cassandra brought in the food: baked fish, garlic potatoes, green beans plus buttermilk pies for dessert. We waited for her to sit down before diving right in. Ten minutes later, we were starting on dessert when I noticed my aunt looking from me to Morelli to her daughter and back again. She noticed me looking at her, looked away briefly and finally spoke.

"Stephanie. Adriana…"

We looked up at her. "Yes?"

"Could I… see you two for a moment?"

I looked at her curiously. "Why? What's wrong?"

"Nothing." She answered. "I just… I'd like to talk to you. In private."

Something suddenly seemed to register in Adriana just then because her eyes widened ever so slightly. "Yeah, okay." She said. "Come on, Steph. I'm sure it won't take long."

Confused but not wanting to be rude, I shrugged my shoulders and made to get up with Grandpa spoke up.

"Why are you leaving the room? We're all adults here."

Immediately, I could see the tension in my aunt's face and horror in my cousin's face. Now I was doubly worried.

"Marcelo." Began Aunt Cassandra.

"No, there's no real point." Grandpa interrupted. "Hell, it has to do with both of them so they should hear it together."

"Dad." Started Uncle Lorenzo.

It dawned on me then that this was something the whole family had thought about and I started freaking out. I shared a look with Morelli and I knew he was as confused, curious and anxious as I was.

"Son, you know as well as I do this needs to be done." Grandpa was saying to my uncle. "Hell, she's your daughter. You don't want her exposed to that."

"Grandpa, it's fine." Adriana said.

"No, it isn't. You think so, but it isn't." He looked at Morelli and me. "We need to talk about how your constant boinking is affecting your roommate here."

Morelli started to choke on his pie and my jaw dropped as I stared in complete shock. My aunt started muttering to herself and shaking her head. My uncle closed his eyes and sighed. And Adriana went pale with the most horrified expression.

"Now I know you two have your high sex drives with your youth and all that but now that you have someone living with you, you need to take consideration about her feelings." Grandpa Marcelo was continuing.

Adriana had slumped into her seat so only her head was visible and I managed to cut a look her way. Not exactly angry but definitely not happy. Morelli was also staring at her.

"I didn't say anything!" She protested though it sounded more like a whimper/squeak.

"And she didn't have to." Added in Grandpa. "Cassandra was the one who figured it out first. You remember last month when she suddenly moved out of your apartment for a day? And then for a week? Her mother's idea. It just so happened I overheard them talking and I put two and two together. I may be old but I'm as perceptive as when I was young. I know how thin those walls are. The same people who built that house are the same ones that built many houses in Trenton, including the one I used to live in. They can't keep sound in to save your life. I didn't exactly mind but my granddaughter is innocent. I can't imagine how she's been feeling living with you lovebirds. Especially with all the stuff young people do now. All that "dirty talking." He made the quote marks with his fingers. "What kind of things have you said to each other? That 'F' word? Have you said that a lot? I hear young people say that a lot especially when asking if you wanna do it."

"Omigod!" whined Adriana as she buried her face into her hands.

I would have voiced the same but I was too horrified to speak. I just sat there gaping as my face grew hotter and hotter with blushing. I didn't even have to look at Morelli to see his expression. He wasn't even eating anymore.

"But you know, I'm not here to scold you." Grandpa told us. "I know controlling yourself can be quite a hassle so I've decided to lend you some tips."

"Tips?!" Morelli and I said in unison.

"Yeah, tips. You know, for keeping quiet during the moment. Because there are things you enjoy doing. I had to learn that with your grandmother. God, the things I used to do to her."

"Ugh, Grandpa stop!" I protested, my feelings of embarrassment turning into nausea as I was forced to imagine my grandfather and sex.

At that point, I heard what sounded like a coughing sound coming from my cousin. Looking over at her, I narrowed my eyes to find her biting her lip to keep from laughing.

"No, no. Not until I'm done. Now, I don't want to sound sexist but it's a common fact that most women are more vocal when it comes to sex compared to most men. So I think you should buy you something like a gag or whatever. You young people are into that kinky stuff right? And in case the roles are reversed and Joseph is the loud one you can buy it for him. Or better yet, buy two or four. Just in case you're both screamers."

"Excuse me!" Squeaked Adriana suddenly as she got up and ran for the stairs and to the bathroom.

She only made it to the top of the stairs before she lost it and we heard her laughing hysterically from downstairs until the sound of the door closing shut it out. I didn't know whether to be angry or what so I just sat there shaking my head. It was a good 5 minutes later before she finally came back keeping her eyes averted as she sat back down.

"Now where was I?" asked our Grandpa.

"Can we not talk about this at the table?" requested Uncle Lorenzo.

"But I'm not done."

"Grandpa Marcelo." I said. "We appreciate the… help. Really. But everything's fine. We're being quiet."

"She's right." Adriana cut in. "I'm not bothered at all. Honest."

"There you see?" questioned my aunt. "Adriana isn't having any issues. Everything is okay. So please let it go."

To everyone's relief, he agreed to let it go and we finished up our dessert. When we were done, we decided to head back home. Aunt Cassandra packed us some leftovers to take with us and sent us on our way.

"Don't forget about bringing that gun by Joseph." Grandpa said. "I still want to see it."

30 minutes later, we were back in the car and driving back to the house in silence. Adriana was sitting silently in the backseat with her head down. I took a quick peek in the mirror to see her shoulders shaking gently as she clenched her fists. When we got to the red light, we stopped the car and turned around in our seats. She looked up at us and then went into a fit of giggles.

"It wasn't that funny!" I said even though I was smiling. I couldn't help it.

She didn't answer. Just kept laughing.

Morelli also smiled and pretty soon we were all laughing. We laughed for a few minutes getting it all out of our systems. When we were done, the car ride continued a bit in silence until we arrived and entered the house.

"Hey, Ana." Morelli began.

"Yeah?" she responded.

"Be honest here. Are you really that uncomfortable sharing the house with us?"

She shook her head. "No. At least not so much. It's gotten better now I've been here longer. The thing with my mom was a while ago. I'm over it. And other than catching you making out occasionally, it's no biggie. Besides, you're only human. It's dumb to expect you to act like robots just for little old me."

Morelli frowned and so did I. That didn't sound like she was okay.

"Look, I told you guys. I'm all right. I promise. Really."

"Really?" I asked.

"Absolutely. And anyway if you're still worried you can always follow the tips Grandpa Marcelo gave you."

The name brought the memory of the dinner to mind and I felt my face warm up at the same time Adriana snickered before she rushed up to her bedroom avoiding the sight of our reactions.

* * *

And that takes care of number 5! Wow! This was really long. Dialogue usually does this to me. Still, I like it because lately my chapters have felt too short. This keeps up and I can enjoy lengthy chapters and still have enough room for more to come! Yay! 

I'm gonna hurry and work on chappie 6. Be on the lookout, 'kay?


	6. Bond Enforcement Tension

All right! Next up is the 6th chapter of my story. Bounty hunting! The first signs of tension.

Disclaimer: It ain't mine.

* * *

_Adriana_

I stood in the shower and let the warm water run down my skin, soothing and cleansing. As I rinsed myself off, I allowed myself a moment of relief. It had been way too long. A few minutes later, I turned off the water and wrapped a towel around myself. Slipping on my slippers, I peeked out the door. With no sign of anyone, I let out a sigh and proceeded to walk into the hall… only to screech in horrified embarrassment at the sight of a familiar man in black, prompting me to dive back to the bathroom and slam it shut in less than 10 seconds. I was panting now, worn out. At that point, I heard the knock on the door.

"Ana?" Said Ranger outside the door.

"What are you doing back?" I yelled back. "You weren't due for at least another hour!"

"The meeting was cut short so I thought I'd see how you were." There was a pause and I knew he was smiling. "Is that why you ran to the bathroom?"

"I only had a towel on! Of course, that's why! I can't just prance around half naked in a guy's house! It's tasteless and just not done!"

Yeah, I was in Ranger's house. Or apartment. Whatever worked. After skipping my showers for 3 days straight, I couldn't stand it anymore. Especially with the summer making me sweat like a pig. I needed to get clean. So I called Ranger and asked again to use his shower. He said yes and here I was.

I knew Ranger was smiling now. "And your clothes are…?"

"On your couch, in my bag."

I heard him walk away and waited. A few minutes later, he knocked on the door again and I peeked out once more. He held out my bag and I took it, closing the door. Once I was dressed, I exited and hurried by Ranger who was still smiling in amusement. Boy, this was embarrassing.

"So is there a reason you left your clothes instead of taking them with you?" He asked to my back.

"I had to use the bathroom. Badly." I told him, heading straight for his fridge and taking out a small bottle of juice. As I walked around and met him at the table, I looked at my drink thoughtfully. It was official. I had no choice. I had to ask. "Say… Ranger?"

He looked up at me. "Yeah?"

"I was wondering… how long will I be able to use your shower?"

He cocked an eyebrow. "Still can't use that bathroom, huh?" I shook my head. "How long will you need it?"

I shrugged my shoulders. I had no idea how long I'd need to use another shower. Most likely until I moved out of the house. Or else maybe bleached and sterilized the entirety of Joe's shower. I wonder which would be easier and faster.

Ranger was looking at me again and I felt the urge to busy my hands with something so I wouldn't get anxious anytime soon. After a moment, I finally got an answer.

"For as long you have to."

"Yeah?" I asked.

"Yeah."

I almost fainted in relief right there. He was gonna let me use his shower! Now all I needed to worry about was Stephanie's relationship with Joseph and whether they'd break up anytime soon. We talked a bit more then I got up and decided to head out.

"What's the hurry?" Ranger asked.

"Bounty hunting." I explained. "Stephanie's going after some perps and I'm gonna help her."

"Will you two be okay?"

"We should be fine." I paused. "Besides, I don't wanna bother you with low bonds."

"It wouldn't bother me if you needed help. Are you sure you can handle it?"

"We can. Don't worry."

A short time later, I was in my car waving bye to Ranger as I started it up and drove off. I was heading to the bonds office to meet Stephanie. It seemed the simplest thing to do. Besides, Lula wanted to come along and it saved time to just take one car and go from there. I parked in front of the building, hopped out of the car and headed inside. When I opened the door, I found Stephanie and Lula already there.

"Hey!" I called.

They turned at the same time.

"Hey, girl!" greeted Lula.

"Hi." Greeted Stephanie.

"Where's Vinnie?" I asked, looking around.

"In his office." Connie answered.

Right on cue, the door swung open and Vinnie came out.

"It's about time you came back to work!" He yelled at me. "Stephanie's been dying without you."

"Hey!" Steph yelled.

I giggled a little. Ever since I became a bounty hunter for Vinnie, he's been comparing me with Stephanie and has come to the conclusion that I'm just what she needs to do a better job. Steph isn't exactly happy with his conclusion but I just find it amusing.

"So are we ready to head out?" I questioned.

"Yeah." Stephanie answered after she stopped glaring at our cousin. "Let me just get the file."

Once she retrieved the file in question, she, Lula and I headed outside together. We were using Lula's car and all crammed into the front seat. I took the liberty to read the file as the car took off. Marco Sanchez. 21 years old. Wanted for defacing a movie theater wall. Hmm, that was interesting.

* * *

_Stephanie_

Ten minutes later, we were in front of the apartment of our skip. I made Lula stay in the car with the motor running in case we needed it and I took Adriana with me. We headed over to the first floor, we reached his door and knocked. He opened and we faced Marco Sanchez.

"Hello…" he greeted, suggestively. "What can I do for you lovely ladies?"

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Apparently 2 women at his door was a dream come true. Adriana and I flashed him our badges and gave him the routine introductions.

"You're gonna need to come with us and reschedule your court date." Adriana said.

"Now." I clarified.

He frowned, sighed, nodded then told us he'd be right out. We decided to wait outside for him. Well, I did. Adriana was totally against it but I reasoned that he wouldn't get far because the parking lot was a ways away. So we waited. A few minutes later, Ana got increasingly antsy.

"He's gonna try and run away." She said.

"You don't know that for sure." I told her.

"Of course he's going to run away. A person doesn't take this long unless they're going to run away."

"Maybe he wants to pack some stuff to take with him."

"Who are you trying to convince here? You or me? Come on, Steph. You've been doing this longer than I have. You should know better."

"I just don't see a reason to be so suspicious."

"Watch. Just watch. Any moment now, we're gonna catch him making a break for it."

A loud crash that was obviously a window breaking interrupted us and we rushed forward to spot him running towards the parking lot.

"Damn it!" We yelled at once as we took off after him.

"I told you!" Adriana exclaimed. "I fucking told you! I knew it!"

I ignored the urge to comment and continued on before suddenly stopping.

"He's heading for the car!" I said.

Without even a word, we turned and ran to the firebird where Lula's attention was instantly caught.

"He's got his car!" Adriana exclaimed to Lula after she dived into the front sheet before me, having gained the lead. "Go, go, go!"

"Hold on, ladies. It's about to get crazy up in here!" Lula yelled.

She revved the engine and before long we were taking off right after the car that had already driven away. Only when we were closing in on traffic did I suddenly worry about this decision. I was getting into a car chase with an FTA! Morelli was gonna kill me.

"We're getting into heavy traffic." I yelled over the wind. "Maybe we should let him go before someone gets hurt."

"But we've almost got him!" protested Adriana.

"Yeah, girl!" added Lula. "He's right in my sights!"

"We won't be able to catch him if we're dead." I said.

There was a pause and I knew I'd made a point. When Lula started to ease up, I felt relief.

"Wait a minute!" exclaimed Adriana suddenly, shattering my ease. "Lula, try to get to the left side of him."

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"I've got an idea. Trust me. Lula, are you almost there?"

"Just a little further." Lula said.

Adriana scooted past me and over to the passenger side, propping herself on her knees so she leaned a little out the window. When Lula was directly next to the driver's side, Adriana gave a sharp whistle, catching the FTA's attention. "Oh Marco… get a load of this!!!" Then before I knew what was happening, she lifted up her shirt, bra and flashed him. Marco got a look, stared and instantly lost control of the car. He crashed into a tree and the car just sat there smoking. Adriana rearranged her clothes and smiled smugly as she turned to us.

"Got him!" She said.

"Way to go, Ana!" She exclaimed, giving my cousin a high five as she pulled over.

I was horrified. "Adriana!!"

"What?"

"I can't believe you just did that!"

She grinned. "Smart move, right?" She paused. "We'd better get over there before he tries to run off again."

We all got out of the car and hurried over but I wasn't finished.

"Why would you do that?" I went on, handcuffing Mr. dazed Sanchez.

"It was the only way I could think to stop him fast." Adriana replied, putting the ankle shackles on him. "He was already far ahead and you said so yourself that if we kept it up, something bad would happen. Then I thought about how he was ogling us at the door and the idea just came to me."

I turned to my cousin with narrowed eyes. "Let me rephrase. _How_ could you do that?"

Ana shrugged. "Well who else was going to?"

"Ugh, Ana!"

"What are you so upset about? It's not like I made you do it."

"That's not the point!" I sighed. "God… When Morelli and Ranger find out about this…"

"And what do they have to be upset about? It's not like I made you do it."

"That isn't the point!" I sighed again. "What possessed you to do that?"

"I told you. It was the only way I thought would stop the guy. And as for why _**I**_ did it, well that should be obvious." I looked at her curiously. "Lula is pretty much going out with Tank so she's out because he'd no doubt get jealous. And you've got both Joseph and Ranger to worry about so you couldn't do it either. I, on the other hand, am perfectly single. I don't have to worry about insanely jealous men in my life losing their temper. I can get off scot free. Well, except with the family but I can handle them."

I stared at Adriana for a long moment in shock. "You thought that far ahead?"

She nodded. "It wasn't that hard."

I let out another sigh and shook my head. "We'd better get this guy to the police station."

"I don't think we need to worry about that." Lula said suddenly.

We turned to where she was pointing and gaped. There were police cars. Two of them had already parked themselves next to us and Carl Costanza and Big Dog exited the vehicles.

"How the fuck…?" Adriana pondered.

"Don't you know? Every time there's a car accident involving me, they just fly over."

"I wonder who called them."

The two cops wandered over and looked from me to my cousin to Lula and back again.

"I knew this would be you." Carl commented. "You were long overdue."

Adriana and I narrowed our eyes.

"Where's the FTA?"

We motioned to the car where they peeked in and heaved the big guy out easily enough and took him to the car.

"How'd you manage this?' Big Dog asked.

We all just shrugged. By this time, two other familiar cars came over and two other familiar men came out and wandered over to us. Morelli looked at the car, then at us and finally at Marco Sanchez.

"Do I want to know how this happened?"

"Nope." I responded.

"Babe." Ranger commented shaking his head.

"Hey!" Marco yelled suddenly from the back seat of the cop car. "No fair flashing your boobs, Blondie. That's cheating!"

Every single pair of male eyes turned to my cousin within an instant. Because of course, she was the only blonde one here with boobs.

"You did _what?!_" Morelli yelled instantly. "What the hell is wrong with you?!"

Adriana glared. "And what the hell is your problem?!"

"My problem is that you flashed some random guy! That's my problem!"

"It shouldn't matter to you! Hell, be glad I didn't talk your girlfriend into doing it too!"

"That's not the point!"

"What is the point? Tell me! What's the fucking point?!"

"Hey, Joe." Called Carl. "Hate to interrupt but we need to get this guy out of here."

Morelli nodded then turned back to Adriana. "We'll finish this later."

She licked her tongue at his back then looked over at Ranger who was also looking at her with that cool yet angry look of his.

"Are you going to bite my head off too? I'm waiting."

"We'll talk later." He told her.

Then he too went to his car. I looked at Adriana and I could tell that she was sizzling underneath. We traded brief unhappy glances then she stomped over to Lula's car. I sighed. It was gonna be a long day from this point on.

* * *

Done with this chapter!! This was a hint of the disagreement that will form between them. Just a few more chapters than the real plot will begin. Stick around! 


	7. Not Getting Any Better

Next chapter of my Stephanie Plum series! My muse is obsessed with this story the most so I may just finish this one up or at least to the half way point before I work on any of my other stories. It's good yet bad. Oh well… I intend to have fun! Arguing and more dreams. Let's begin!

* * *

Disclaimer: This is not mine.

* * *

_Stephanie_

"How the hell could you do something so stupid?!"

"I got the guy, didn't I? Seemed pretty smart to me!!"

We were over at Morelli's place and once again, he was pretty damn furious. This time though, it wasn't with me. Instead, it was my cousin. And currently, the two were going at it as they had been for the past 5-10 minutes.

"Well, then you're brain is more stupid than your idea!" Morelli was saying or yelling.

"Why don't get that stick out from up your ass, Joseph, before you start choking on it?!" Adriana snapped. "Honestly, what harm did it do?"

I thought now was a good time to add something lest things got really out of hand. My cousin wasn't good with being yelled at. Immediately, she'd get hostile and most likely wouldn't listen. Problem was Morelli was prone to yelling. A lot. There was no way this would end well for either of them and they'd probably be madder at each other than when they first started.

"It didn't." I said interrupting. "But it could have. You don't know what that creep could have done if he'd been loose."

Adriana looked at me for one full second before sighing. "Give me some credit here." She said. "I'm not an idiot despite what some people might think. I'd have never flashed him if I thought it'd be dangerous."

"It was dangerous! That's what you don't seem to get!"

"For crying out loud, Joe! You're acting like I was on Stark Street trying to be a call girl!"

"If you're willing to flash random guys to get something out of it, you might as well be!"

Ouch! I jerked and stared at Morelli in shock. Talk about a blow. I looked at Adriana whose eyes had widened and I knew it stung. Her gaze then went from fiery rage to icy contempt within an instant. Here's the thing about my cousin. When she gets mad, she yells pretty much like everyone in Jersey. But then there are the times when she's eerily like Ranger and gets quiet. Usually it was when someone crossed the line. Now was one of those times. Without another word, she turned away and headed towards the front door.

"Adriana." I called to her but she didn't turn around.

"Hey! Get back here, we're not done!" demanded Joseph going after her.

Adriana halted and turned her head to glare at him. "Yes. We are." I found myself wincing. Yep, no yelling. "I have nothing more to say to you Joseph so back off." She paused. "Oh and by the way. I can't seem to find my headphones so if you suddenly get that urge that gives you a hard on by the time I come back, keep your voice down when you're fucking my cousin. All right?"

And then Adriana stomped out slamming the door behind her. A few moments later, we heard the car screech off. I flinched again and stared at the area in shock. Another low blow. It seemed that she was trying to make Morelli feel like she felt. Insulted in a degrading way. I noticed how she deliberately kept my name out of it and smiled to myself at the way she tried to spare me any embarrassment. Finally, I looked at Morelli.

"Well…" I began. "That went well."

* * *

_Adriana_

I was driving around furiously trying to collect my thoughts. I was pissed. Beyond pissed. The nerve of Joseph Morelli comparing me to a hooker. I should have hit him. But I didn't. I don't know why I didn't hit him. Instead, I just rushed outside before I could do anything. Oh well. Maybe that was for the best.

But I needed somewhere to go. Somewhere I could cool down. It didn't take me long to figure out my choice. There was one thing that always made me feel better and soothed even my savage temper. I shot down the Burg like a shot until I ended up parked in front of the bakery. I ran inside and up to the girl in charge. Today, it was Marjorie Lando. She looked up to greet me but stopped when she saw my face.

"I need sweets." I told her. "Lots of them."

"Bad day?" She asked.

"You have no fucking idea."

Five minutes later, I was back in my car sitting in the parking lot with $200 worth of desserts. Cookies, brownies, cupcakes and a few pies to eat for later. I was working on a peanut butter cookie and letting the delicious taste drown me when I started thinking about the recent events. The bakery was nice but I needed a place where I could relax and watch TV without thinking about any horrid tension from a certain asshole. And then there was the silent asshole. Thinking of him made me realize that I also needed a place where I could shower, preferably early at least for today. That already ruled out one place. I could go back to Stephanie's apartment but he could get in there easily what with his key. And the dark asshole didn't even need a key since he broke in regularly. I couldn't go to the Bonds office either since Mr. Dark was over there a lot. My aunt and uncle's place wasn't even in the equation at the moment. I paused thoughtfully as I scarfed down a chocolate cupcake. When the realization hit me, I did a mental head slap. Duh! There was always one place that I could always be alone if anyone else had something to say about it. And they would. I pulled out my cell phone and dialed.

"Hey Mom? Would you be in the mood to cook something for me?"

I started the car and drove back through a familiar neighborhood to go to my parents' house a while later. I swiftly parked into the driveway and headed straight for the door at the same time my mother arrived so we met at the front door. She looked at my expression and tugged me inside.

"Whoa." Exclaimed my Grandpa. "Someone looks pissed."

"What happened?" questioned my dad.

"Joe and I got in a fight." I said.

"What?!" exclaimed my family.

"Well, not a fight. Just an argument." I said correcting myself quickly. There'd be hell to pay if they thought he'd laid a finger on me. And I didn't want that. Yet.

Everyone relaxed instantly.

"Feel like talking about it?" My mother asked me.

I looked at her thoughtfully before shaking my head slowly. "Not really. I just wanna relax and avoid him like the plague. And eat some comfort food."

"Of course, sweetie." My mom sat me down in the dining room and rushed into the kitchen.

When she came back, she had all my comfort foods. Chicken wings, baked fish, crab legs, deviled eggs, mozzarella sticks and other finger foods. I enjoyed these things when I just wanted to rest. Smiling and giving my mom a hug, I dived in.

About an hour later, I had my fill. My father and grandfather were back in the living room watching TV. My mother was sitting next to me and I'd just finished telling her about my horrible day. It might not be so smart but I wasn't too worried. It was my father I had to worry about. My mother took after my uncle. Calm and collected.

"I see…" she replied thoughtfully. "Well, I'm not surprised he is angry. I'm not too happy with what you did either. I believe he was just trying to watch out for you."

I sighed. "I know. And the thing is I understand. But that's not what pissed me off."

"What pissed you off?"

"I'd rather not say."

"Oh… well, I can't make you talk but if you ever want to talk some more, I'm here."

"Thanks Mom."

I stood up, hugged her and headed up stairs to my old room. Now that I thought about it, I didn't smell all that fresh. I didn't feel that fresh either. The running after that damn FTA completely wore me out. And I'd broken out in quite the sweat. Normal circumstances, I'd be a Joseph's house. But I couldn't go over there for obvious reasons. Plural. I had another reason why I couldn't go. To substitute for that, I'd go to Ranger's apartment. But he was out of the question too. For the same obvious reason. The 2nd one, not the first one. So I'd figure I'd get my shower out of the way while the opportunity was here.

I jumped into the shower and washed myself up briefly. Just enough so that I smelled and felt good. When I was done, I headed towards my bedroom to search for a change of clothes. Once that was done, I collapsed on the bed suddenly tired and drifted off for a brief nap.

5 minutes later, I was upright and feeling very frustrated with myself. Sighing, I groaned and forced myself out of bed to wash my face. When I was done, I sighed. I'd just had another sex dream. Again. This time it was with Ranger. That's right. Ranger. Stupid, friggin' man in stupid black. But that wasn't the worse part. Oh no, the worst part was that this wasn't the first dream. In fact, I'd been having multiple sex dreams about Joseph and Morelli ever since the first one I had 4 days ago. Now that I think about it, the dreams were the reason I'd been waking up earlier than usual. I sighed again as I went downstairs. This was getting to be troublesome.

"Oh, Adriana you're awake." My mother said to me once I was in sight. "Your cousin just called."

I inwardly twitched. "Stephanie?"

"No, Vincent."

I relaxed. "Vinnie? What did he want?"

"He said he wanted you to get to work ASAP. It sounds important."

"Did he?" The only reason Vinnie would call would be if he was running low on money. "Well… I guess I'd better go before he calls again."

"I made you a lunch to take with you."

"Thanks Mom."

Half an hour later, I was parked at the Bonds office and walking in the door. Connie was sitting customarily at her desk and Lula was turning in a bond receipt. Hmm, so she can get some work done. I waved silently to them both.

"Vinnie!!" I yelled. "I'm back!!"

The door opened, he stepped out, ran over and gave me a hug.

"It's about time!" He exclaimed. Then he turned me around and placed me in front of Connie. "Give her whatever is left."

When Vinnie went back to his office, I turned back to Connie who cocked an eyebrow. "I take it he was waiting for you."

I nodded. "He called me and everything. Has Stephanie come by?"

"Came and left. Why?"

"Just wondering. So what have you got?"

"Just these."

She handed over some and I looked them over. Petty Theft. Graffiti. Disturbing the Peace. Drunken Disorderly Conduct. They seemed simple enough. But not much money. I'd have to catch them all and add up the price for a little over $1000. I looked up from my file to the ones on her desk.

"What about those?" I asked pointing.

"Oh, those are LC." Connie told me.

"LC?"

"Lost cause. Basically ones that someone else went after but couldn't find."

"Really…" I picked up one and peeked. Grand Theft Auto. This used to be Stephanie's. "Can I give it a shot?"

"I don't know. We usually save these for Joyce." To put her on a wild goose chase.

"Joyce doesn't need any more bonds." In spite of the fact that she wasn't using the nooners with Vinnie to steal them, she was still getting bonds. Irritating to a tee.

Connie shrugged. "Okay. If you want."

"Thanks."

I claimed the GTA and looked through the other files when suddenly I felt the strangest feeling there were eyes on my back. I gingerly looked up to find Connie staring behind me with wide eyes. I peeked to the side and saw Lula was looking the same way. Shit. There was only one reason this would be happening. Okay… keep calm. Maybe if I ignored him, he'd go away. I mean, why not? He's the silent type, right? So he should just avoid me and not speak to me at all. Right?

"Adriana." Said the quiet voice behind me.

Double shit! Well, there goes that plan. Damn it all to hell. I really didn't want to have to do this now. Slowly, I turned around to find myself face to face with Ranger Manoso. And he was glaring at me. Obviously, he was still pissed. Well, that was fine because I was still pissed too.

"Can I help you?" I asked.

I didn't expect my voice to be so cool and I immediately felt the three gazes intently hit my back. Ranger looked at me levelly for a moment.

"I need to talk to you. Outside." Ah, a commanding tone…

I leveled my gaze. "And what if I don't want to."

The trio of eyes seemed to zero in and I swear I heard Connie and Lula gasp. Wow, I was on a roll today. Ranger's eyes narrowed—something I never thought I'd see—and I think I saw his jaw clench. Then his expression changed and I saw the answer to my question. He'd make me.

"Last time I sprained my ankle." I responded. "This time I'm at 100. It won't be so easy this time."

Again, he narrowed his eyes and I met his stare with my own. Daring him to try it while he was daring me to test him. I don't know why or what came over me but it was official. I was challenging Ranger Manoso. I was so gonna die.

Suddenly, Ranger broke the gaze and shared a look with all 3 members of our audience. In less than a minute, they'd filed out of the office leaving just the two of us. Cowards. I gave him a choice glare when he looked back at me. That time he smirked making me glare some more.

"You didn't come over today." He said. "Is the situation resolved?"

I blinked in surprise for a second confused when it suddenly hit me. "Oh. No. I showered at my parents.'"

He stared intently at me again. "You avoiding me?"

I crossed my arms. "I believed it was in my best interest to steer clear of you for a while." I met his eyes. "Since I failed, why don't you say what you want to say already and be done with it? You don't seem like the type of person to beat around the bush."

That got me a smile. "You're right." He paused and looked at me seriously. "What you did back there… you know it was dangerous."

I nodded reluctantly. "Yeah."

"You won't do it again. Ever."

Inwardly I twitched with the order in the tone. "I promise nothing."

"Ana."

"Ana, what?" I really didn't know when to keep my mouth shut, did I?

"This isn't a game. You can't pull risks like that."

"Quit treating me like a child, Manoso. I'm not an idiot. And you take risks all the damn time, don't you? Why should I be any different? At least I got the job done."

Now we were back glaring at each other. And Ranger looked like he wanted to strangle me in frustration. I wanted to smack him to respond to the insulted feeling I had. We might have gone that route had Melvin not entered at that moment.

"Oh! Am I interrupting something?" He asked timidly.

"No." I told him. "I was just leaving."

And I stalked past Ranger and out the door before he could stop me. As I got outside, Connie and Lula instantly came to my side. The women flocked to me with questions like crazy. I was right. They did think I'd lost my mind. I didn't bother to answer. I mumbled some excuse or other and took off as fast as I could. Next stop, the mall.

* * *

Okay… I'm going to stop things here. I thought about cramming this chapter so it'd be longer and I decided it'd be better to save the other stuff for another chapter since it will be long. Real long. Resolutions will happen next chapter. My last story I was worried about being too long. But this one, I've decided to go with the flow. This may be one of my longest stories ever! 


	8. Girls Night Out! Revelations

I'm going to work on the 8th chapter of my story! This is gonna be one of my most fun chapters to write. A night with friends including a run in with the ex and then getting piss ass drunk. That's what's in store for Adriana. All the while she avoids Stephanie, Morelli and Ranger. But they'll see each other again. It's inevitable. Anyway… I shall start!

Disclaimer: Don't be ridiculous.

* * *

_Adriana_

I was at the mall, stuffing myself at the food court. I decided not to go after the FTAs yet. I just didn't feel up to it. I was still upset. First Joe and now Ranger… These guys were really starting to piss me off. And I was stuck with them. As long as they were both interested in Stephanie, I was stuck with them. Honestly, what is it with the men my cousin attracted? It seemed like she had always had bad taste in men. For as long as I could remember. And of course, she didn't see it because she was weak. Weak. Letting herself get intimidated by the likes of those testosterone filled jerks. But then, I probably shouldn't talk seeing as how when I walked away from Ranger, I'd been shaking in my sneakers. I sighed. It was kinda pathetic.

I plunged back into gloomy thoughts and went to pig out on more of my sundae when someone tapped me on the shoulder. Inwardly, I twitched and turned around bracing myself for unwanted company. The unease turned to relief and then all out joy when I saw who it was.

"Hey!" I greeted.

In front of me was a group of 5 women. My friends from childhood. 2 of them I'd seen recently. Kiki and Nina. But the other 3 I hadn't seen since I graduated college. Bree: a dark skinned black girl, Michelle: a light skinned black girl, and Erin: a red head.

"What's up, girlfriend?" greeted Erin.

"Mind if we join you?" asked Bree.

I gestured to the chairs around me. "Knock yourself out."

Everyone sat down around me.

"What are you guys doing here?" I asked.

"Oh, we were just passing through when we spotted you all by your lonesome." Explained Nina. "So we thought we'd just pop over."

"So…" began Bree. "How are you?"

"Miserable." I answered monotonously.

"What happened?" questioned Kiki.

"Long story short, Ranger and Joseph are what happened."

"What do you mean?" asked Nina.

"Well… we got in an argument. Actually, _I_ got in argument with them both."

All eyes widened.

"Seriously??" They all asked in unison.

I nodded. "If you don't mind, can we like not talk about it? I've got this uncontrollable urge to destroy something that I'm trying to suppress here."

That got me some sympathetic smiles as they agreed to cease mentioning it.

"You know what you need?" Michelle suddenly piped up. "Cheering up. And I've got just the way to do it."

We all looked at her.

"Why don't we have a girl's night out?" she suggested.

"That's a great idea, Chelle!" exclaimed Erin. "When should we do it?"

"I was thinking tonight to be honest."

"Tonight?!" The rest of us exclaimed.

"Why not? We've got nothing else better to do, right?"

The other females nodded to themselves. No one had plans.

Michelle turned to me. "What do you say, Ana?"

They all looked at me.

I thought about it briefly. I should be trying to hunt after these bonds… but hell, who was I kidding? That was work. I was so not up for work. Plus it did sound like fun. Just me and the girls and no one else. It paid to have a few friends separate from your relatives and such. I'll admit it was a bit sudden… but what's life without spontaneity?

I shrugged my shoulders. "I'd love to."

My buddies squealed with excitement, hugged me, and gave me high fives. Then we set to work planning how tonight would turn out. First, we'd eat out—probably catch a movie too—then we'd head to a club and just party until we could party no more. Now I was real excited. I hadn't been to a party in ages.

* * *

Around a half hour later, we were at the movies trying to decide what to get in line for. I really didn't care but the rest of the girls couldn't choose. I was starting to get impatient and was about to suggest we do something else when I nearly crashed into someone as I turned around.

"Oh crap! I'm sorry. I didn't see you there…" I said, trailing off when I realized who it was I bumped into.

The guy in question had been telling me I needn't apologize when he too trailed off having recognized me. We stared at each other in shock for the longest moment. Then our expressions changed. His was pleasant and welcoming.

"Adriana." He said.

Mine? The exact opposite. "Max."

It was this time—luckily or unluckily—that my friends had managed to turn in my direction to see this encounter. No doubt, they caught my tone immediately because they flocked over at top speed and latched onto me right when I was really leaning towards throttling the son of a bitch in front of me.

* * *

It was during my freshman year of college where I met Max in the spring. He was kinda blah. Dorky, black hair, quiet. Average looks to be honest. Personality didn't catch my attention either. I didn't really associate with him much. I didn't want to. But we took the same classes and when he asked for my help, I gave it through countless study sessions. I got to know him more that way and we really hit it off. Before the year ended, we started dating. It extended to 2 and ½ years and by the end of my junior year, he proposed. I said yes and the plan was to marry after we graduated. In fact, it was gonna be one month after our graduation. But then, one day before graduation, I'd gone to his apartment off campus to spend time with him now that finals were over. He'd said I was always allowed to pop by unexpectedly and even let me have a key. He must have forgotten that because I was able to enter and find him in bed with his roommate. I can't remember much after that sight. Just blinding rage. Wedding was called off. I called just about everyone I fucking knew for support and the works. He got the threats for breaking my heart and then some and I didn't speak to him again. When graduation came, I was gone the moment the ceremony was over. I'd hoped to never, ever see this guy again. But I guess I should be so lucky.

* * *

I had to give Max some credit. He was always good at picking up on emotions. And he felt my immense hatred coming off in waves even before my friends came to restrain me. That made some distance between us, which I loved. 

"Uh, Adriana." He began again. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"

I didn't utter a word.

"I've been meaning to talk to you. You left the ceremony so quickly I didn't even get the chance to say goodbye."

"I don't have a damn thing to say to you, Max."

"Come on, Ana."

"Back off, Max!" snapped Kiki. "She doesn't want anything to do with you so go away."

"Not until she talks to me." He snapped back. Then he looked at me. "Now that I know you're in Jersey, all I have to do is look you up to find out where you stay."

My friends' glares were fiery enough to scorch. Mine was right up there but I managed to tone it down. He'd never get my family to tell where I stay but at the moment… I was staying with Joe and Stephanie. Stephanie only knew we broke up and Joe knew nothing. And I wasn't sure I wanted to explain it to them. I sighed.

"Fine. But not here."

I gestured for him to follow and I headed around the corner between this building and another but away from the public. I didn't exactly want an audience gathering. So I left my friends behind too. Not that I expected them to be far away.

"Well?" I asked.

He sighed. "Must you be so cold to me?"

"You're kidding, right?"

"It was years ago!"

"2 and ½ and what's your point? It doesn't change what you did. What? Because time passes, it voids everything?"

"Ana…"

"And don't call me Ana. It's Adriana to you!"

"You're treating it as more than it has to be!"

"You're treating it as less than it should be!"

"You never even gave me a chance to explain."

"What is there to possibly explain? How it happened? No thank you!"

"So you don't care why?"

I paused. Of course, I did. I'd always wanted to know why he did it. I calmed myself down just a little to listen.

"It wasn't anything serious. I just wanted to see what it was like. It was a one time thing."

"That's the reason you cheated? Because you wanted to know what it'd be like?!" And I exploded all over again. "That's the most stupid, selfish reason I've ever heard!! What kind of person does that?!"

"Haven't you ever heard of college experimentation?" Max said defensively. "I'm not the only guy who's done it!"

"Most guys are single when they experiment! Or they experiment with their significant other! And anyone who's taken while experimenting is as big a bastard as you are!"

"Like I really could have tried it with you!"

"If you had asked me."

Max widened his eyes. "You'd have done anal?"

"Of course I'd have done anal!" I snapped. "I was going to fucking marry you, jackass! I'd have done BDSM even if you had wanted because I was that crazy about you!"

"Then come back to me."

I gaped. "_WHAT?!"_

"We could try it again, you know."

I was speechless for quite some time before I shook my head adamantly. "No way."

"Why not"

"I'm not in love with you anymore, Max. In fact, thinking about it now, perhaps I never really was." I'd somehow calmed down again. Don't ask me how.

Max frowned, then sighed and shrugged. "Can't blame me for trying."

I twitched, the rage coming back.

"Can I ask you a question?"  
"What?" I said through gritted teeth.

"How did you get into my apartment and why'd you come?"

"You gave me an extra key. Said if I ever wanted to, I could always come over anytime, unexpected and without warning."

He nodded understanding. "I knew I shouldn't have given you that key."

And that was it. This conversation had pissed me off plenty of times but that broke the camel's back. Screeching in fury, I tackled him without thinking. I just launched myself. Next thing I knew, I was being held back by the girls with all their strength. Max was on the ground nursing a few choice injuries. And an audience was steadily growing. I was panting with adrenaline and struggling to get free. I wasn't done with him but they weren't letting go.

"Do yourself a favor, Max!" yelled Bree. "Keep away from Ana if you know what's good for you!"

And then I was practically dragged and shoved into one of the cars while someone got in mine and we drove away.

* * *

Some minutes later, I felt arms circle me as tears silently fell from my cheeks. 

"Oh Ana…" soothed Erin. "Don't cry."

"This…is…the…worst…day…ever!" I said between light sobs.

The rest of the car ride was spent trying to comfort me.

"I wonder…" I began after a while. "Do you think he's gay or bi?"

Bree shrugged. "Who knows?"

The other women looked at us curiously.

"You didn't know?" replied Bree. "Max was with a man."

Predictably, the reactions were instantaneous and filled with shock. All eyes landed on me and I merely nodded my head. Once again, I got sympathy and comforting from the women. I didn't mind.

* * *

When we arrived at the club—titled Surreal—I was reluctant to enter. I just wanted to go somewhere secluded and wallow in my misery. But nevertheless, I was persuaded to enter. We found a table and after some talking, I got left alone while they went to dance. Not for long, however, because Michelle came over to me with Long Island Iced Tea and a bottle of other alcohol. I wasn't sure I was up for it but after thinking about the day, I decided I really needed a drink. Half-hour later, I was buzzed enough to start venting about my horrible day and travesty of a love life. Mainly including the raunchy dreams I kept having of Joseph and Ranger. When another half hour passed, I'd gone into graphic detail. It occurred to me by this time that I may have been drunk. In fact, it seemed like a very good possibility. But I didn't much care. By this time, I'd stolen the bottle and was drinking straight from it. Within the hour, the bottle was down to half.

"My life is just so depressing…" I slurred. Then I swigged down the entire last half of the bottle until it was empty and burped, giggling with a sigh. "I feel so much better now. Thanks bunches, Michelle. You're the best friend ever!" And I hugged her tightly before letting go and skipping to use the bathroom.

* * *

_Stephanie_

It was 11:00 and I was a tad concerned because I hadn't heard from Adriana yet. I wasn't worried so much for her physical well being as her emotional and mental well-being. I knew Morelli had really hurt her feelings. I knew she was still mad. She was avoiding us. The silent treatment was one thing. Avoiding was another thing altogether. She never tried to show it but I knew she was very sensitive and a bit insecure. Like anyone, she tried to make herself feel better. But sometimes Ana would go overboard. That's the part that worried me.

I shared a meaningful look with Morelli, who was frowning. He sighed and I knew he was thinking about her too. I'd just hung up the phone and approached him.

"Aunt Cass said that Ana went out with friends. They were supposed to be at this new club for a party. Surreal, I think."

His police radio suddenly turned on and he rushed over to check it. Morelli turned toward me and the expression in his eyes made me gulp. Speak of the devil.

We jumped into his car and drove over to Surreal. We didn't have to get close to see the problem. There was chaos going on in there. A crowd was standing outside the doors and police cars were parked around. Morelli barely stopped the car before I got out and ran to the crowd. I spotted a few familiar faces that surprised me.

"Kiki? Nina?" I said.

Morelli followed my eyes. "You know them?"

"They're Ana's friends from college."

Suddenly, 3 girls that I didn't recognize came from around the back of the building and went straight to Kiki and Nina.

"No luck." Said the red head.

They all frowned.

"This is bad." Mumbled the dark skinned black girl. "I can't believe we lost Ana."

My attention zeroed in instantly.

"This probably wouldn't have happened if someone hadn't gotten her drunk." Commented Kiki

The girls glared at the light-skinned black girl.

"She was depressed!" defended said girl. "I was just trying to make her feel better. How was I supposed to know she'd get that snockered? And anyway, I'm not the one who left her alone!"

She glared at the red head.

"You left her by herself when she was drunk?!" shrieked Nina.

"She said she had to pee!" The girl protested. "Like you'd really expect something bad to happen at the bathroom."

"Crap. This isn't good. You haven't seen Adriana drunk. She's like a kid. Only she knows stuff."

Morelli and I moved closer where I started to ask what the problem was when I heard overly loud giggling and yelling. My eyes dived right into the club where Adriana was dancing on a table. She suddenly stopped, complained that she was hot and yanked off her shirt, fanning herself with it and exposing her bra. A group of leering men yelled at her like a stripper then one took her hand, pulled her off the table and started leading her to the back. This all happened within minutes and I shrieked in horror at it. That was like the signal as Morelli instantly tore right into the club running at top speed into the crowd. A few more cops followed right after him. I waited tensely for what felt like forever when he came back out, his arm around my cousin's waist. When he placed her down, I instantly ran to her.

"Hi, Stephie!" She greeted, doing a little finger wave. "Hey, do you know your boobs are bigger than my boobs?" She felt her chest a little bit. Then before I could stop her, she groped one of mine while staring for a good second. "Yeah, I definitely think yours are totally bigger."

I felt the need to bite my cheek so I wouldn't laugh, freak, or anything like that. Omigosh, they were right! She was like a child that was easily fascinated by stuff. I might have been horrified if it wasn't so funny.

Adriana commented on a few other things including Morelli's muscles where she spent a good few moments poking them.

"Whoa…Check it out!" She said to me. "His arms are so hard. Come feel, Stephie. They're so hard he's not even flinching."

Morelli was biting his lip to stifle his laughter and I shared his sentiment. Then Ana exclaimed how much fun she had, waved her arms in the air whilst giggling like a schoolgirl and passed out, falling backwards. Morelli snatched her up before she could hit the ground. The rest of the cops told Morelli they could handle things so, thanking them, he scooped up Adriana bridal style and carried her to the car.

As we started driving away, Adriana ended up leaning over to her left and proceeded to snuggle against Morelli's arm. He blinked in surprise, smiled and wrapped that arm around her shoulder bringing her closer to him. I found myself smiling. It just looked so cute. Well, the day wasn't a good one but at least it ended nicely. I didn't want to even think about what might have happened to her if Morelli hadn't gotten there in time. I sighed and squeezed my cousin's hand. Maybe tomorrow would be better.

* * *

Whew! This was exhausting. Yeah, it's good I saved this for a new chapter instead of cramming it into last chapter. I am so worn out! But this was fun! And this is just the first. Once the plot kicks in and home girl gets herself kidnapped, it's gonna be fun chapters almost all the time! Ooh! I can't wait!! 

Stay tuned loyal readers! And review me!


	9. A Slow Day

I'm going to work on my 9th chapter now! Hangover and apologies plus something extra. Let's begin, shall we? (A/N: I just bought Lean Mean Thirteen!!!!! w00t!!!! That is all.)

Disclaimer: Just a fan…

* * *

_Adriana_

I woke up physically ill. More than I've ever been in my entire life. My head was pounding, the room was spinning, and I felt nauseous. Yep, I was definitely ill. Today was… Okay, I had no idea what day it was. Or time for that matter. In fact, I couldn't really remember much of anything. I suppose I'd be able to if I tried but it hurt to try so I didn't bother. I decided since I was clueless about some very important things, I should get up and figure those out. Bad idea. The moment I righted myself, the room tilted and my stomach began to swirl around. I knew then I was going to hurl. There was no stopping it. So I ran out the door and into the hall straight for the bathroom. I made it just short of the toilet when I couldn't hold it anymore and threw up in the next best thing. The trash. I was heaving and whatnot with all my feeling. Every time it felt like I was done, I had to barf again. I never noticed the two people leave their bedroom and rush to my side until I felt masculine arms supporting my shoulders while feminine arms held my hair. I might have had time to be embarrassed but I was too pooped to muster any emotion. When I was finally all out, I just sat there with my head down and trash can next to me just in case.

"I'd turn to face you guys but you're both really close and my breath isn't all that fresh right now."

Ten minutes later, I was back in bed and both Stephanie and Joseph were in the room with me. I'd managed to at least gargle 4 cups of mouthwash before I was taken back to my room and now I was supposed to be resting.

"What day and what time is it?" I asked, clutching an ice pack to my aching head with my voice hoarse.

"Saturday and 9:00 am." Stephanie answered, softly I noticed. No doubt to be gentle on my headache. Times like this I loved her.

"Only 9? Serious?"

"Serious."

"What… happened?"

"You don't remember?" Joseph asked.

Normal circumstances I may have mustered some sarcasm in here but since I was so weak, I opted not to. "I remember my girl friends taking me out to cheer me up and we went to this club called Surreal… and that's it." I paused. "I got drunk, didn't I?"

Stephanie nodded. "Snockered."

I groaned. "I didn't do… anything… I mean, nothing happened, did it?"

Both of them looked at me. "Well…"

"Oh God! What did I do? No, never mind. I don't want to know!"

"It really wasn't that bad." Stephanie began.

"What did I just say?!" I yelled.

"Would you just listen?" Joe asked me.

I pouted but said nothing.

"All you really did was dance around on a table and tried to strip naked."

This time, I gave him a look. "That's not that bad?"

"It could have been worse. You only got your shirt off."

I nodded. "I guess that's true. Anything else I need to know?"

Stephanie paused. "Yeah. While you were drunk, some creep tried to take advantage of you but Joe, Eddie, Carl and a few other cops got there before it could happen."

My eyes widened. "Oh." I looked at Joseph. "Looks like I owe you big time." I thought this was pretty calm of me considering I'd just been told I was almost date raped. So I was really proud of myself. Especially since my first instinctual reaction was to freak out uncontrollably.

Joseph shook his head. "No, you don't. I wasn't about to stand there and let something happen to you."

I smiled at him. All right, I'll admit it. I was touched. It was actually nice to know he was watching out for me. And then I remembered that I was supposed to be mad at him. I thought back to our fight and searched for the anger that had been there and I found nothing. Not even a little shred left.

"So how long should I stay in bed?" I asked.

"Can you sit up?" Joseph asked.

I didn't know. So I did just that to try it out and was immediately overcome with dizziness. "Nope!" Hastily, I dropped back into bed so I wouldn't get sick again and I sighed.

"Then you won't be getting up for a while." Stephanie told me.

"Un." I grumbled.

The couple did a little checking around to make sure I'd be okay then decided to leave when I stopped them.

"I need to tell you guys something. Two things actually." I said.

They both looked expectantly.

"First… Joe, I'm sorry about yesterday. The FTA and the arguing. You were right. I was stupid. And I'm sorry I kept giving you such a hard time."

Joseph looked at me for one full second then walked over and gave me a one armed hug. "It's okay." He smiled. "It wasn't like I was any better anyway."

I felt better after that. "And second… Steph, you remember my ex fiancée, right?" She nodded. "And I know you don't know about him Joseph, so I figured I'd tell you. Long story short: His name is Max. I caught him cheating on me with a man about a week before our wedding. I tried to kill him. It was called off. There was much yelling and violence and I hate the son of a bitch now. But I had the misfortune of running into him yesterday. I just thought I'd let you know since there's bound to be news about how I brutally attacked a man in the middle of broad daylight in front of the theater. Now you know why."

Stephanie and Joe were both staring at me in shock. If we were a cartoon, it might be funny. Actually, it was still rather funny. Only thing missing was both their jaws simultaneously dropping to the floor.

"Wow…" My cousin murmured.

I had to resist the urge to giggle for some strange reason. Joseph shook his head and muttered something in Italian that I translated as crazy ass woman. I decided to let it go though because it didn't seem like such a big deal. This time they headed out for real, making it a point to tell me to get some sleep.

I reawakened to the sound of a phone ringing. For a moment, I thought it was an alarm clock and nearly destroyed the one in my room before I realized where the sound was coming from. Annoyed, I forced myself to sit up. It wasn't the house phone because the ringer was a little melody. My gaze instantly landed on my purse and I'm sure I would have set it on fire if looks could destroy. I yanked my cell out and looked to see it was Ranger. Now I was really ticked.

"This had better be fucking good." I snapped into the phone.

"I'll take that greeting to mean you still aren't feeling well." He responded, as though I hadn't exploded into the phone. Did nothing affect this guy?

"How did you know I wasn't feeling well? Never mind, I think I already know. Did you learn about my night out too?"

"Enough. I'm glad Morelli was there."

And there was that touched feeling again. Wow, I was going soft.

"How bad is it?" Ranger asked.

"Not bad. My head isn't killing me and I'm not throwing up anymore. I'm still a bit unsteady on my feet though."

"And you're resting." Not a question.

"Yes, sir."

"Good. Call me when you're up and around again."

"Okay." I paused. "Oh, and Ranger… about yesterday"

"I know. It's okay." He paused. "Take care of yourself, Ana."

And then he hung up. I lied there with the phone in my hand for a few seconds in thought. I didn't expect that in the slightest. But I was happy it happened anyway. Putting the phone up, I yawned and closed my eyes.

* * *

_Stephanie_

I was in the living room with Morelli when Adriana came downstairs. I looked up at her.

"So you're finally awake." I acknowledged.

"Eh." She mumbled. That didn't surprise me. My cousin wasn't exactly a morning person.

"Feeling any better?" Morelli asked.

"Meh."

"Your food's on the table." I told her.

"Food?" She looked. "Oh, thank God, hangover food!"

An instant later, Ana was at the table, digging through the bag. She scarfed down a handful of fries and swallowed it down with soda, sighing after. I smiled at her. I knew she'd be thrilled about that.

"What time is it now?" she asked.

"12:00." Joseph replied.

"Were you guys here the whole time?"

"Not together. One of us was always here while the other was gone."

"Oh."

Adriana finished her fries and soda then joined us on the couch. She sat on the other side of me and I noted that she really must be out of it. Normal circumstances, she'd somehow cram herself between Morelli and me to keep us from getting too cozy in front of her. I decided to make it a point not to bring it up and remind her.

* * *

This was a short one. Especially compared to my last one. But I wanted to make one very long chapter. A very long chapter. So I need time to prepare! Things have calmed down for the moment, right? But in the next two chapters, it's all going to be shot down to hell. You'll see.

Stick around!


	10. Caught in the Act? Not Really

Okay! Time for an update!!! We're gonna have some humor! Or my best try at it. That being said… let's begin.

P.S. Pardon the long wait! Writer's block sucks.

Disclaimer: Alas, it's still not mine.

* * *

_Stephanie_

"You did what?!" I screeched, looking at Connie incredulously. "What were you thinking?"

I was back at the Bonds office now, deciding I could use some money and that Adriana was well enough to be on her own. My plan was to try the LC files deciding I'd changed my mind to go for them only to find that they'd been given to my cousin days earlier.

"I was thinking that it couldn't hurt." Connie was telling me. "Chances were that she wouldn't be able to find any of them and it would keep her dizzy for a while. Not only that but it means less for Joyce."

I paused thoughtfully for a moment. Connie made a good point with Joyce Barndhart.

"So has she managed to bring any in since then?"

Connie looked through a few receipts. "Only 1. And he wasn't much. Trust me, you've got nothing to worry about, Steph."

I had another thoughtful pause before conceding. Connie was right. I decided to go with her advice and stop worrying about Adriana. Besides, maybe I was worrying about her too much as it was. I mean, I'm sure Aunt Cassandra did lots of worrying herself anyway. And if my aunt was any bit like my mother, chances were she was driving my cousin crazy.

"But while you're here, do you want some of these other FTAs?" Connie asked me.

"You'd better take some FTAs!" Vinnie yelled from his office door. "Adriana's the only one who's been bringing any in! If this keeps up, Joyce gets the next batch!"

I narrowed my eyes. "Yeah, why not." I responded to Connie, who'd paused to search for the planted bug. "I could use the money anyway."

"Here you go." She handed me a few files then went back to searching for the device.

Taking them, I suddenly had a thought. "Ranger hasn't been here much, has he?"

Connie shrugged before peeking under the desk. "It's probably because there haven't been very many high bonds. But he's been working with his company a lot too. Aha!" Connie popped her head up and wielded the bug. "Found the little bugger."

"I'll see you later, Connie."

I set out the front door in time to hear her smash the bug followed by the sharp curse of Vinnie from his office. I was smiling by the time I got to my car.

I drove over to RangeMan, thinking I'd sate my curiosity and see what he was up to. Parking into the garage, I waved to the camera and used the passkey to go upstairs to Ranger's apartment. I called out to him as I went inside but there was no answer. I'd resigned myself into believing he wasn't home when I heard the shower turn off. Based off past experiences, I knew it was probably not a good idea to see Ranger after his shower. Especially knowing how my hormones were likely to act. Before I could think to escape the premises or anything of the sort, the bathroom door opened. And the person to come out was Adriana, dressed in a robe with a towel wrapped around her hair.

Our eyes locked and our jaws dropped simultaneously. I really had no idea what she was thinking but I wondered if she was as shocked as I was. There were a lot of thoughts that should have been running through my mind insanely at this moment. Perhaps if it wasn't Adriana standing in front of me, I would be having those thoughts. As it was, I was just… stunned. And confused. Very confused. After staring at each other for a lengthy moment, she spoke first.

"It's not what it looks like, Stephanie! I swear!"

I sighed, feeling suddenly amused. "Adriana." I began.

"No really! I can totally explain!"

"Ana…" I tried again

The door suddenly opened and Ranger walked in. He stopped at the sight of us standing in the living room and gave us his usual smile. Just barely there.

"Looks like I got here just in time." He remarked.

"There's a logical explanation for this!" Adriana exclaimed, turning back to me.

I glanced at Ranger, whose smile had grown bigger after those words though he remained silent.

"You know how I am about cheating bastards!" Adriana was still going. "Tell her, Manoso! I'd never--"

"Adriana!" I yelled, grabbing her shoulders.

"What?"

"It's OK. I'm not accusing you of anything."

She blinked for a moment. "Really? But I'm standing in a robe after just using the shower."

"So I see." I cocked an eyebrow. "How'd you get in here anyway?"

"I used a passkey. Ranger gave it to me. After my ankle. Remember?"

I nodded.

Some time ago, Adriana injured her ankle at my apartment when I wasn't home. Ranger had stopped by, found her and brought her to his place to take care of her. It just became a given that she'd stay there until it healed. When it finally did, he let her keep a key with the invite that she could come whenever she wanted as long as she called ahead first.

"You really aren't bothered?" Ana asked me. "Most women would be freaked right now."

"Well, if you were any other woman and not my cousin, I would be pretty pissed. But right now I just want to know what you're doing here."

"Um… well… I came here to use his shower." She stated. "But… you probably figured that out by now."

"Obviously." I paused. "Wait, you came here specifically to use Ranger's shower?"

She nodded, prompting me to again cock my eyebrow.

"Why? What was wrong with the shower at Morelli's?"

"Um…" Adriana paused and looked at Ranger.

"I'll leave you two to talk." He said, catching the look, before going back out the front door.

"Promise you won't get mad?" Adriana questioned when Ranger was out of sight. "Or upset? Or depressed? Or…"

"Would you just spit it out?"

My cousin took a breath. "Because it was cleaner."

"Cleaner?? How could it be cleaner??"

Ana frowned. "I don't wanna say it."

"Ana…"

"You're not gonna like it."

"I'll risk it."

"Are you sure?"

"Adriana!"

"Lack of sex cooties!" She blurted.

I stared at her. Sex cooties?!

"I know you and Joseph have done the nasty in the bathroom." She continued. "I saw you both leave the bathroom at the same time. There's only one reason a couple would be in the bathroom at the same time. And there's only one good place for that reason to happen. So now that bathroom is swarming with all your sex cooties. That's why I came here."

I didn't say anything for a second, letting the words digest. Once they did, I felt wave upon wave of embarrassment followed by guilt. Loads of it.

"Oh, Ana… I--"

"You promised you wouldn't get upset." She interrupted. "It's okay, you know. I mean, I was really pissed at first but then I figured it was no big deal. I don't plan on going into that bathroom any time soon but it's not life changing or anything."

I smiled at her. She really was trying to make me feel better. I can't say it worked but I opted not to tell her.

"How long have you been doing this?" I asked.

"About a week or so."

Again, I felt immense guilt. I looked at her robe. "No change of clothes?"

"Usually, I do. Because I've been taking them in the morning or at night. But after the club thing, I didn't do it last night and I totally wasn't in any condition to do it in the morning. So I tried the afternoon. The plan was to shower secretly and then come back wearing the same clothes I put on. So then you'd never know I was over here. But then you came over."

We heard the door open once more and Ranger poked his head in. "Is it all right to come in now?"

"Yeah." Adriana told him. "I should get dressed anyway. Has Ella finished my clothes?"

Ranger nodded and with a wave, Ana went down to see Ella. When she was gone, I turned my attention to Ranger. He definitely had an amused expression going on.

"You were listening, weren't you?"

He looked at me and put on the full 100 watt smile. "Sex cooties?"

"It's her phrase, not mine."

He gave a quiet laugh. "I had a feeling that must have been the problem when she asked to use my shower. But I wasn't expecting that."

I looked at him horrified. "She told you?!"

"Not in those words. I believe she said the shower was covered in germs that you and Morelli were immune to." He paused. "But I can see why she wanted my shower since there's never been more than one person in it at a time." The look that resulted from that sentence was enough to bring the temperature up a few degrees and I know my doodah was feeling it. "We could change that."

"Not gonna happen." I said, backing up from him. "Besides, I feel guilty enough with Adriana as it is. I don't wanna make it worse."

"Yeah, she'd probably run from my apartment without a second glance if she were to find that out."

Adriana came back a few moments later only to let us know she was heading out. I decided to join her and with a goodbye to Ranger, we left.

* * *

_Adriana_

We drove back to Joseph's place, stopping to get some food on the way. Parking my car behind Stephanie's, I got out to help her with the bags and took the lead, opening the door with my key. Once I got it open though, I found myself knocked to the ground as Bob came barreling at me from friggin' nowhere. Well, it wasn't nowhere exactly. I just didn't expect him, which is rather strange seeing as how long I've been living there for so long and Bob does this almost all the time. But I guess my thoughts were elsewhere.

I was still currently on my back, dealing with Bob slurpies when Joseph came to my rescue and pried the dog off. Taking his hand gratefully, I got to my feet and looked around for the bags that I'd lost to see that Stephanie had them. Well, that was relief. We all entered and I flopped onto the couch, letting out a sigh while the couple went to getting the food ready.

"So where did you two meet up?" Joseph asked us, as he sat down on the couch passing me my share of the food.

"Ranger's place." Steph and I responded in unison, without really thinking if you ask me.

Joe took a moment to look at us and I was keeping my eyes averted. I was hoping he'd focus more on the fact that his girlfriend was at his love rival's home and less on the fact that I was also there.

"Both of you?" His gaze landed on me. "Adriana, what were you doing there?"

Damn it. No such luck.

"Um… nothing special." I told him, ignoring the intensity that I knew his eyes had gained after that.

"She was using the shower." My cousin answered.

"Stephanie!" I protested.

"The shower??" Joe repeated. "Why would you have to use his shower? There's a perfectly good one here."

"Not anymore." I said, automatically. I almost slapped myself literally after that.

"Excuse me?"

"You might as tell him now." Stephanie advised. "He should know anyway."

I cut my eyes to her then sighed. "You and Stephanie have done the nasty in that shower." I told him, cutting to the point. "I know because I saw you both leaving at the same time. You right after her. Because of what you did in there, the shower is now crawling with your sex cooties. I didn't want to be touching all your sex cooties so I asked Ranger to let me use his shower." There. I said it.

Joseph did a repeat of Stephanie and didn't say anything for a second. When he finally seemed to come back to himself, I saw his face redden and the expression was chock full of mortification and I'm sure guilt.

"Adriana--" He started.

"You're not getting upset, are you Joe?" I queried, cutting him off. "I don't want you getting upset. It's like I told Stephanie. It's not a big deal. I won't step foot in that shower but other than that, I'm not majorly affected or something like that. I promise."

Joseph fell silent once again, back into his thoughts. "You're really OK?"

"Cross my heart."

Eventually, he smiled. "And you're never touching the shower again?"

"Not until you bleach and/or sterilize it. Or else get a new bathroom. Whatever's easier/quicker."

Joe let out a laugh. "I'll see what I can do."

* * *

I'm done!!!!! With this chapter anyway. Stay tuned for chapter 11! We'll finally be getting to a pinnacle part! Where everything goes to hell. Keep with me! And thank you for your patience! I adore you so much for that! I'll see you later. 


	11. Back to Normal Serious Talks

Next chappie!! Up! It is time for the s to hit the fan! Part 1. Starting with a near fatal experience for both our bounty hunter girls. Thanks to everyone for reading this far! It only gets more interesting from here. Here we go!

* * *

_Stephanie_

I was driving around in my newly acquired vehicle doing a search on Cherry Street to try and find Adriana's car. There was a very good chance she'd be mad at me if she knew if I was doing this. But I was willing to risk it. Because I was ridiculously worried about her.

Today, Adriana was going FTA hunting, deciding it'd be a good idea after putting it off for so long. Her target was Denise Catelli, a young Jersey woman who lived on her own. The crime was Grand Theft Auto. She was originally in the Lost Cause pile because I couldn't quite figure out where she'd gone. Now my cousin had taken her on. I was originally fine with it. She didn't look like she was much of threat so I was sure it'd be an easy, quick catch. But the thing was she hadn't returned in the time I'd expected her to. I was told not to worry. But I couldn't help myself.

Now here I was doing a drive by of the neighborhood looking for my cousin's car. Eventually, I discovered it parked in front of a brick house. Her turquoise Sedan. That was definitely a sign that she was still having trouble. Or maybe no one was home and she was being nosy like she sometimes was. Parking my car behind it, I got out and went to the house. It was closed in pretty tight and the lights were off. I frowned. Why would Adriana be rooting through a house with no lights? True, it had barely passed mid day but still… I gave the knob a try and realized that the door was open so I went inside, closing it behind me.

"Hello?" I called. "Anyone home?"

There was no answer. Frowning some more, I proceeded to do a little exploration of the house. I went through the first floor moving from the living room, kitchen and bathroom. Then I set off to the 2nd floor, looking through another bathroom, a laundry room and a bedroom. I then did it all over again just to double check. When I still found nothing, I let out a sigh and leaned against a wall. This was exhausting. Not only that but I was feeling a little dizzy as well. Shaking it off, I decided that I should go out into the back yard, thinking that perhaps Adriana had began a chase in that direction. It was when I was about to leave that I noticed a door I hadn't seen before in a corner close to the front door. I opened it to find a set of stairs descending downward. Following them, I saw that it led to the basement and kept going until I got to the bottom. And I saw two bodies lying on the floor. One was that of the FTA. The other was of my cousin.

"Adriana!" I cried.

I sprinted over there and dropped to the ground beside her, checking her vitals. Her pulse was steady but her breathing was weak.

"Adriana!" I said again, grabbing her shoulders and trying not to panic.

I didn't understand what had happened. I was confused, worried and fighting off a wave of nausea that seemed to come from nowhere. And then I heard a faint hissing sound. Just barely noticeable. I looked up to where I was sure the source was located and my breath hitched at the sight. It was a furnace and it was leaking. Two words started ringing in my mind. Carbon monoxide. In a house with all windows and doors shut. Nausea and lightheadedness. It all made perfect sense.

I dashed up the stairs and practically burst through the front door giving myself some much needed air. Then I tore down the basement again and went to my cousin.

"Adriana!" I called, shaking her. "Wake up! You have to get up! Adriana!"

To my relief, she opened her eyes and looked at me with a slightly unfocused gaze. "Stephanie? What--?"

"No time!" I cut her off as I went to awaken Denise. "We've got to get out of here. There's a carbon monoxide leak!"

My cousin stared at me for a minute and I wasn't sure she understood. And then it hit her. "What?!"

"Help me with her!" I said, gripping Denise who was even more out of it then Ana was.

"Uh… right!" Ana murmured.

Together, we got the other woman on her feet and up the stairs. By the time we all got outside, we were exhausted and every one of us pretty much sank to the ground.

"I'm… not feeling too hot." Adriana moaned.

"I'll… go call for help." I announced.

10 minutes later, the street was filled with a couple ambulances and a number of police cars all lined up in front of this house. Denise was wheeled into the ambulance van with an oxygen mask strapped to her face, having fallen back unconscious shortly after we got outside. Adriana and I were sitting on a single ambulance bed, holding our own oxygen masks to our faces. It was only a second later that I spotted Morelli coming our way. Upon seeing the masks, his pace considerably quickened.

"Are you two all right?" He asked us when he got over.

"Yeah…" I answered, nodding.

"Un." Adriana grunted with closed eyes.

"What happened?" Morelli asked.

"Carbon monoxide." I told him. "There was a leak in the basement."

Adriana was looking around as we spoke. "Huh. Funny…"

"What?" Morelli and I asked in unison.

"I'm surprised Ranger isn't here. Doesn't he usually pop up when something like this happens? Oh, no wait, there he is."

Sure enough, in the direction Adriana pointed Ranger Manoso was walking over from his black Cayenne. He didn't quicken his pace but I noted the slight concern in his eyes when he grew closer. No doubt due to the masks.

"You two all right?" He asked when he arrived.

I nodded. "Yeah, we're fine."

"Un." Adriana grunted again, this time just waving her hand.

He didn't ask what happened to us. I guess that was probably because he already knew.

I watched my cousin take a considerably large breath of oxygen.

"How long were you in there?" Morelli asked us.

I shrugged. "Over 30 minutes maybe? Adriana was there longer, that much I know."

"If I had to guess…" Adriana started. "Maybe over 2 hours or so. I wasn't keeping track." She paused. "Probably it was actually longer now that I think about it."

Morelli and Ranger cocked their eyebrows. "Probably?" They said in unison.

"She lost consciousness." I informed them. "When I found her, she was out cold with the FTA." I looked at her. "Probably it wouldn't have happened if you were more careful."

Adriana gave me a look. "Like I was really supposed to know that there was a carbon monoxide leak. Hell, I didn't even know there was a basement until Denise locked herself inside."

"Denise?" Ranger repeated.

"The FTA." I clarified.

"I spent a good amount of time trying to get her to open the door." Ana continued. "But she wouldn't budge so I had to go in."

"How'd you manage that?" I asked.

"I picked the lock."

We all looked at her.

"What? It's not that hard. You of all people should attest to that, Steph. People pick the lock to your door all the time."

"True… But that doesn't explain why you were still in the house."

"We couldn't get out. When you opened the door, you had some trouble, didn't you?"

"Yeah…"

"That's 'cause it jammed. No matter what we tried we couldn't get it open. And there neither of us had a phone."

"You didn't have your cell phone?" Morelli interrupted.

"I didn't leave it if that's what you're getting at. It was in my car."

Ranger and Morelli both cut her a look.

"I didn't think this situation would happen. I mean, honestly what are the chances?"

I had to admit. That was pretty slim odds. But that didn't make me feel better.

"How's she doing anyway? Denise, I mean." Adriana wondered.

"She'll be fine." Joe told her. "She should be on bed rest for a while but it's nothing serious. Not like it could have been."

"That's good…"

Joe walked over to my cousin and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Ana, are you sure you're OK?"

She nodded. "I'm just tired. It's not a big deal."

"Yeah. It is." Ranger told her. "You should stay in bed for a while."

Adriana frowned briefly but then gave a resigned sigh. "You're probably right."

We had the medics give us another check up. Once we were good to go, Ranger opted to drive us home so Joe could get back to work since he was busy with a case. Our respective farewells later and we were off.

* * *

_Adriana_

I was staring out the window of Ranger's kick ass car, stewing in my thoughts with a sort of unpleasant feeling. To be honest, it wasn't the fact that I was nearly poisoned to death that bothered me. I didn't quite see it as a big deal. Nor was it that I pretty much got reprimanded like a child for leaving my phone in my car. Nope. It was the fact that Ranger Manoso was driving me and Stephanie to Joseph Morelli's house. And Joseph appeared to be all right with it. That's what got me. I mean… is this normal? Did people usually do this kind of thing with the circumstances that existed? I was still pondering all of this when my cousin broke through my thoughts.

"What are you thinking, Adriana?" She asked me from the front seat.

I shook my head. "Nothing."

My cousin cocked an eyebrow. "Nothing?"

"Yep. Nothing."

"Your expression says otherwise." Ranger spoke up, eyes still on the road.

I turned wide eyes in his direction, bristling. What the hell, man! He was supposed to be driving. Why the hell was he looking at me? "Then you're putting too much focus where there shouldn't be." I retorted, voicing my thoughts.

"You can't say it's nothing." Stephanie chimed in again. "I know you, Ana. And it's definitely something. Something that's bothering you."

"It's nothing important that you need to know." I said.

"Well, I want to know."

"No, you don't."

"Yes. I do."

"Well, too bad 'cause I don't wanna tell you."

Stephanie had turned around in her seat by then and I could see her eye do that twitch she's prone to do. "Oh for crying out loud…"

"It was nothing."

"Tell me."

"No."

"Yes."

"N-O."

"What if I treat you to lunch for a week?"

"Still no. But thanks for the offer."

The car came to a stop in front of a red light and I soon found all eyes on me. Even Ranger's. Lousy rotten…

"You're not gonna leave me alone on this, are you?" I questioned.

"Nope." Stephanie replied.

I let out an annoyed sigh.

"Why the need to make this secret?" Ranger asked in that interrogative tone he always uses.

I frowned and narrowed my eyes at him. "Because, as Stephanie should know, it is never something good to hear. Hell, this happens all the damn time in the same way. I have a thought that I don't wanna verbalize. Someone wants to know what it is. I refuse to say it. They pester me. I blurt it out and sure enough, they look like they swallowed their own tongue." I looked at Steph. "I can name something recent. Very recent. Tell me I'm wrong."

I watched Stephanie sit there with a thoughtful, remembering expression. I had hope that she'd agree with me and let it go. I was sure I came close. But it slipped away from me.

"Thanks for the concern but I'm willing to risk it" She explained to me. "Now talk to me."

I let out a groan. "Fine. I'm wondering whether having the guy who is flat out pursuing you take us to the home of the guy that's supposed to be your boyfriend is in bad taste. Happy now?"

There was a pause where my words were digested. They seemed to be surprised. At least, I think Ranger was surprised. I've never seen him surprised so I didn't know.

"Light's green." I informed, breaking the silence.

Ranger pressed the gas and off we went again. For a moment, I was hoping no one would say anything. Letting it go seemed to be the logical next step. But then Ranger spoke. Again.

"Does it bother you?" He asked me, eyes back on the road, unmoving.

I blinked for a moment before shaking my head. "No… not really. I mean, it's not like it's really my business anyway. I was just curious, that's all."

It was about this time that I realized something as I finished my sentence. How I was tip toeing with my words and all. I was actually trying not to hurt Ranger Manoso's feelings. Ranger Manoso's feelings! The guy who makes it seem like he doesn't have any. I was worried about hurting his feelings. I could just hear one part of me go: I'm sorry… what??

"Curious?" inquired Stephanie.

"You hear about unwritten rules of life and relationships and things like that. Bree's mom used to tell us how there's always a right way and a wrong way to do something. Even… looked down upon things. I guess I was just wondering where this would go or like what it means now. But Joe seemed fine with it anyway so it's obviously nothing too bad, right?"

There was another pause, shorter this time.

"Either way, we can just forget about it. I mean, it's none of my business." I added almost hurriedly.

I half expected to get another response because that's usually how my luck went. But to my surprise, neither of them said anything and the car ride lapsed into silence the rest of the way.

When we finally got to the place, I got surprised when Ranger asked if he could see me before I went in. Alone. Alone? I think I gulped. But nevertheless, I stayed behind while Stephanie headed inside.

"So…?" I began after a moment.

Ranger looked at me levelly. "I want to know how you're feeling about all this. Be honest."

I let out a soft sigh. "Honestly? I'd say this is a question of morals." I paused then looked right at him. "If you're asking me whether I'm okay with this… I'd be lying if I said I was." I took a second to gauge his reaction and didn't get any signs. Of course. "But it shouldn't matter what I think. I mean, I'd like to think it matters. But it really shouldn't. And it's not like you're shoving this… for lack of a better word… situation into the open."

That part got a reaction and he raised an eyebrow slightly.

"Think about it." I continued. "As far as Aunt Helen, Stephanie's mom is concerned, Steph is with Morelli and they're destined to get married some day. You're just some guy, albeit unnerving, that she knows. Maybe an obstacle. Uncle Frank, her dad doesn't really care since you haven't done anything to catch his attention. We all know that Grandma Mazur is crazy about you so it doesn't really matter to her either."

Ranger rolled his eyes on the last sentence and I found myself smiling.

"As for my parents… the only reason they're not on your ass is because they don't even know you exist. I haven't mentioned you at all. Otherwise… well with my mother, it probably wouldn't be pleasant."

I'd gotten his attention then. Big time. "You haven't told your parents about me?"

I shook my head then cocked an eyebrow. "Why? Would you like me to?"

"It'd be nice."

I did a double take. "Seriously? 'Cause you know by doing so, they'll want to meet you. And that most likely means dinner. With my family."

He laughed. "I'll risk it." He paused. "You and Stephanie are family. I've met the majority now I'd like to see the rest. That's you and your part of the family."

I couldn't help it. I smiled. It wasn't fair how easy this guy could win me over.

"I'll see what I can do."

* * *

That's it for chapter 11! I hope you liked. This is the longest chapter yet! Even I didn't expect it. It all just kind of spilled out of me. Anyways, stick around for #12. I've got more in store!


	12. It's Official He's Coming Over!

Greetings oh wonderful fans of mine!! I'm back in Plum land and about to work on the 12 chapter of my story! I got Plum Lucky and my muse ate it up!!

We'll have lots of amusement here when this chapter is done! Ooh! I can't wait.

* * *

Disclaimer: I'm too lazy to bother coming up with anything

* * *

_Adriana_

I'd say that today was just like any other day, but I'd be wrong. Big time. Many things would end up happening today.

It was mid afternoon and I was in the bonds office along with Stephanie, Lula and Connie. Currently, I was gawking at Lula with my mouth hanging wide open. The reason? I'd just discovered that Lula was seeing Tank.

"Tank?!" I blurted. "As in Rangeman Tank?! Ranger's best friend! That Tank?!"

"Yep." Stephanie responded with a nod.

"Wha..? Whe…? How…? Why didn't anyone tell me?! I mean, when did this happen?"

Lula shrugged. "I guess a few months before you moved here."

"And you're just telling me this now?! You could have filled me in. I like being in the loop too, you know!"

By this point, the atmosphere changed and I saw Connie and Lula's gazes lead behind me. That signaled that Ranger Manoso had just walked in. Normal circumstances, Ranger would speak with Stephanie first, what with lusting after her like he does. Today, however, I cut him off before he could reach her as I approached with rapid steps.

"Did you know that Lula and Tank have something going on?" I asked him, eyes wide and my finger pointing to Lula as I spoke.

I was right up on him now, pretty much invading his personal space. For a second, he was silent blinking at me with just the slight widening of the eyes; the closest I think he's ever come to showing a startled expression.

"Yeah." He answered.

"Oh come on!" I whined, before turning away to lean against the wall with my arms crossed.

As I sat there stewing, Ranger and Stephanie got to talking and she filled him in on what he'd missed. The guy gave a look showing he was amused and I felt myself bristle. It didn't really surprise me that he'd be amused. I expected it. But it didn't make it suck any less. To ignore it all, I focused back on Lula. I tried to picture her and Tank together and found myself openly staring at her once again. It was still hard to digest. I mean… Tank?!

"Damn girl." Lula said, snatching me out of my thoughts. "How long you gonna keep staring at me like that?"

"As soon as the shock wears off." I explained. Pausing, I looked thoughtful for a few moments. "Nope. Still there"

This actually got me an apologetic look from her and I accepted it, bounding off the wall over to Connie's desk.

"It sure has been quiet." I observed. "Where's Vinnie?"

"Out of town." Connie answered. "He left this morning when you weren't here. He should be back tomorrow."

I nodded. "Any new FTAs?"

"Not today."

Suddenly, my phone rang. Checking the ID, I saw it was my mother and headed outside to take the call.

"Hey, Mom." I answered.

"Adriana. Sweetheart, how are you?" She replied.

"Fine."

"Good. Well, I was calling to remind you about lunch today."

I paused. "Lunch?"

My mother paused. "Adriana Elizabeth Plum! Have you forgotten that today is your grandfather's birthday?"

Oh crap. "What? No! No, no, no, no, no! Don't be silly. Of course I remember… But, why are we having lunch? Don't we usually have special dinners?"

"Because tonight Marcelo is going to have a birthday party."

"Really?"

"I know. I was surprised too. But it's true. Now you're going to come, right?"

I nodded frantically even though she couldn't see me. "Wouldn't miss it. 4:00, right?"

"That's right. Don't be late."

When we disconnected, I let out a sigh. I'm a terrible granddaughter! Forgetting birthdays? I never forget birthdays!

I reentered the bonds office only to peek my head in. Everyone else was still inside, save for Ranger. I nearly did a double take when I saw he was gone. I didn't even see him leave!

"Hey, guys! I'm heading home now."

Stephanie turned to me. "Already?"

"Yeah. I've gotta get ready to run some errands and stuff."

"I'll go with you." She decided, catching up to me.

I didn't know why she offered but I didn't complain. We said our goodbyes, hopped in our respective cars and left.

* * *

30 minutes later Steph and I were at Joseph Morelli's house though Joe was currently not home. It was weird for me to refer to this as my home but I did without hesitation… and it didn't sound so bad. Presently, I was searching for a change of clothes as I told my cousin what was on the agenda.

"A birthday lunch for Grandpa Marcelo?" She repeated.

"Uh huh." I told her. "Apparently some friends of his wanna have a party for him tonight so we're doing this thing early this year."

"I see."

Finding what I wanted, I proceeded to change. "I wanna see if I can find him a present before I go."

Stephanie cocked an eyebrow. "You're only just buying him a present now?"

"Yeah well… I kinda forgot."

"You forgot Grandpa's birthday?!"

"Oh don't you judge! You're not exactly granddaughter of the year!" I finished changing. "Anyway… you wanna join me or stay here?"

She paused. "I think I'll stay here for a while. Recharge my batteries."

"Okay. I'll see you later." Snagging my purse, I headed out the door and to the mall.

* * *

Around an hour or so later, I had my present and was now in the food court, treating myself to a meal. It was at this point, I suddenly had a thought. Taking out my cell phone, I called home again.

"Hey, Mom? Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure, sweetie. Go ahead."

"You know the people Steph and I work with…"

"Uh huh…"

"Well, one of them has been wondering about having dinner with you so you can meet."

"Oh?"

"His name is Ranger… well, actually, his name is really Ricardo Carlos Manoso but everyone just calls him Ranger. Although, sometimes he goes by Carlos. But not Ricardo 'cause it's lame. Well, I don't know that for sure but I've never heard him use it that often. Personally I think it sucks."

My mother smiled on her end. "It does sound rather boring compared to the other names."

"Definitely. So would you have him over?"

"Ranger… Is he that dark Cuban American young man? Always wearing black?"

"That's him."

"Of course. In fact, he can come today."

"Today? That's short notice, isn't it?"

"If he can't make it, then he can come tomorrow."

I paused. "I think that'll work."

We hung up and then I dialed another number.

"Yo." Ranger picked up.

"Hey, it's me. How's it going?"

"Average." He paused. "What's up?"

"My parents are having a special lunch/dinner thing today for my grandpa's birthday in exactly 3 hours from now. Still wanna have a meet and greet? If it's too short notice, you can try tomorrow."

There was another brief pause. "Tomorrow will be busy. I can make it today."

This time I paused. "Are you sure?" It wasn't just about the time but the dinner period.

"I'm sure."

"All right, then. I'll see you there."

Time went by relatively quickly and I was back at home with 10 minutes until I had to get to my parents. I was making a few last minute decisions with my outfit when a thought occurred to me. Ranger had never been to my parents' before! How would he get there? I ran to my phone with the intent to call but stopped before I could press a button.

"Probably he's already found out the address…" I mumbled to myself with a snort.

"Who?" Stephanie asked, looking away from the television.

"Oh… um… Ranger. He's coming to dinner today."

That got my cousin off the couch. "Seriously?!"

"Yeah… we'd talked about it. You know my mom and dad haven't met him yet. I guess he thought they should." Stephanie still looked surprised, then she hurried upstairs. "What are you doing?"

"I'm going with you." She called down to me. "No way am I missing this."

I thought about protesting but just shrugged my shoulders. It didn't seem to matter really.

5 minutes later, we were out the door and heading straight to the Burg. We pulled up to the driveway where my mother was waiting patiently for us and I spotted Ranger's black Cayenne coming behind us. Unexpectedly, I gulped. This was it… Ranger was going to meet my parents! I hoped to God this went well.

* * *

I'm stopping here! I was gonna put the meeting in this chapter but I'm tired and stuff. I feel it'd be easier if I put it in the next one. Originally, I'd planned to upload them both... but the chapter after this is a toughie that I'm still working on so it seemed easier to get this out of the way. But don't worry. You won't have to wait for long! Keep reading!


	13. Strangely It could have been Worse

AN: Sorry, sorry, sorry!!! I can't believe it's been a year since I've updated! Bad writer! Bad! Forgive me! I promise I'll make it up to you. Updates at least once a week, I promise!

Chapter 13! We'll have an interesting dinner here… the calm before the storm. This will be so awkward… I can't wait!

* * *

Disclaimer: Fan fiction, people. Fan fiction.

* * *

_Adriana_

I walked up to my mother who greeted me with a hug pretty much immediately. Ranger and Stephanie came up from behind me as our embrace ended. I then watched as my mom eyed Ranger with curiosity in her gaze and gulped a bit.

This was it. Friggin' Ranger Manoso was coming to eat at our house! To say I was nervous would be the understatement of the year. I was freaking out. With good reason, I'd think. When Joseph was over, it wasn't the most peaceful dinner we'd had. And he was actually known around here. Ranger was a complete and total stranger that none of my family knew of until today. And unlike Joseph Morelli, I didn't have any words to say about this man beforehand. I was starting to wonder whether this was a good idea.

"Mr. Manoso…" My mother began. "My daughter says you go by many names?"

Ranger nodded. "Carlos or Ranger is fine."

My mother paused. "Ranger… it is then." She gestured toward the door. "Come along and get settled. Lunch will be ready in a minute, I just need to set the table."

We all followed my mom into the house and I hadn't realized I was lagging behind until Stephanie snagged my hand and gave it a squeeze.

"It'll be fine." She whispered, comfortingly.

"How do you know?" I hissed back. "You thought the same thing when Joe came over and look how that turned out!"

"Yeah well… the circumstances were different. It won't be the same here."

I knew what she was referring to. During that particular dinner, the lack of peace stemmed from Steph's physical relationship with Joseph. As far as anyone knew, there wasn't one happening with Ranger. Although it was debatable how long that would remain so. Still, I decided not to point that out.

With a nod, I squeezed my cousin's hand back and hurried on as she pulled me along. The pair of us caught up with Ranger who surprised me by placing a comforting hand on my shoulder. I couldn't help but smile at him. Once we got inside, my mom headed into the kitchen while the rest of us flocked into the living room with my father and grandfather. Normal circumstances, I'd be in the kitchen with my mom helping her out. But I didn't wanna leave Ranger alone with my dad. My father was protective and tended to regard any males he'd never met with suspicion whenever I brought any around. So did Grandpa, only he was more obnoxious about it. The only reason Joe was an exception was because of Stephanie. After all, he'd pretty much shown interest in her ever since they were kids. If they hadn't been involved with each other back then, I'm positive the dinner wouldn't have gone half has pleasantly as it did.

"So you're Mr. Manoso." My father acknowledged, holding out his hand.

Ranger took it. "Nice to meet you Mr. Plum."

My grandpa looked him over. "I hear you're a bounty hunter too…"

Ranger shrugged. "Not so much anymore."

"You got a gun, though?"

"Yeah."

My grandfather opened his mouth but never got his words out before my mother barreled in.

"Don't even think about it!"

"What?" He protested.

"You know 'what?'" My mother snapped. "You were going to ask for his firearm!"

"I only wanted to look at it."

My mom rounded on Ranger then. "Don't you dare show him that gun, Ranger Manoso!" She commanded, waving her finger at him. "You hear me? He's liable to steal it from you."

This was actually my mother's most intimidating posture and tone or one of them anyway. And I'd seen a lot of people quail under it. At least they would take a step back and raise their hands in a calm down gesture before doing what she asked. Ranger didn't exactly do anything but I'm sure I saw him lean back just a little to create some distance. I think.

"I would not!" Grandpa Marcelo protested.

My mother only gave him a disbelieving stare and I saw that my father had the same look on his face. I have to be honest… I didn't quite believe it either.

Attention was back on Ranger as my mother expected an answer.

"I won't ma'am." Ranger replied. "I promise."

Mom eyed him for a few more moments before giving a satisfied nod and heading back into the kitchen. I found myself smothering a giggle but I was grinning. Stephanie and Ranger looked at me and the grin only got wider as I took notice. But neither look was anything negative so I took it as a good sign. The next few minutes were spent hanging in the living room where Grandpa questioned Ranger about the various details about what else he did for a living. That was actually the only conversing going on so it was mild. I was hoping for mild so I was pleased with the way things were progressing. Finally, my mother came and told us it was time to eat.

Everyone filed into the dining room and took her respective seats; I sat to the left of Ranger and Stephanie sat to his right. My family doesn't do too much talking when we eat. It's why it was decreed that except during dinner, we could eat in the living room where the TV was located but let's face it, the silence can be a tad uncomfortable. Only due to my grandfather's birthday were we eating together during lunch time.

About 30-40 minutes within the meal, Grandpa Marcelo stopped eating in order to pose a question.

"Say… Ranger…"

Ranger looked up.

"Which one of these lovely ladies there--" He gestured to me and Steph—"are you interested in boinking?"

The following things happened simultaneously. Stephanie dropped her fork, Ranger pretty much choked on his juice and I gawked openly with my mouth hanging open.

"Grandpa!!!" I cried, horrified.

"What? It's a valid question." He defended.

"You know, now that it's out there… I'm curious about that as well." My father spoke up.

"Dad!!" I protested.

"Well, I am."

I turned towards Stephanie and Ranger, not surprised that they were staring at me. "I-I don't know where this is coming from! Swear to God!" I turned back to the males of my family. "Where is this coming from?!"

My mother intervened. "I believe it was worded wrong." She began, before turning toward Ranger. "What Marcelo wants to know… is what your relationship is with Adriana and Stephanie."

Stephanie started to speak when my father held up his hand, cutting her off. All the eyes of my family members were eying Ranger with almost interrogative gazes. I gulped then, knowing the importance of this thing. They wanted Ranger to speak, in his own words. I shouldn't have been so damn nervous but I just couldn't help myself. _Please don't say anything that'll upset them_, I thought.

To his credit, Ranger didn't seem the least perturbed. Other than the first incident with the juice and all. I found myself looking at him as well, wondering what the hell he'd say.

"Adriana and I are associates." Ranger began, calmly I noted. "We've worked together from time to time. We're also good friends."

It was at this point I realized I was smiling. He considers me a friend! That made me really happy for reasons I can't be sure of.

"So there's nothing going on with you two?" My mother asked in a little surprise.

Ranger shook his head. "No. I think of Ana as a very close friend but that's all."

I closed my eyes. For reasons I couldn't be sure of and didn't want to be think of… hearing that dropped my spirits a little. Hastily, I shook it off.

"And my niece?" My father questioned, quietly.

Dread settled once again. He'd used that tone with boys that he knew were into me! I began frantically going through questions in my mind. Did my family have an inkling of what was really going on? Did my mom talk to her brother and figured something out? How much did they know? What would Ranger say?

When Ranger spoke again, I was filled with what felt like anticlimactic relief. Because he'd just pretty much repeated what he said about me with the addition of how long he knew Stephanie. But I suppose beggars can't be choosers.

There was a pause as everyone nodded briefly and I thought I could relax. I spoke too soon.  
"One more question." My father said. "You believe in cheating?"

My stomach dropped. _Omigod!!!!!!_ I jumped to my feet, panic moving me. "Holy crap! Dad, Grandpa, I think the other team made a touchdown! And Mom, what's that smell? I think something's burning!"

I got the reaction I wanted and everyone moved at once.

"Oh Dear Lord, the brownies!!!" My mother shrieked, making a break for the kitchen.

The males in my family uttered their share of obscenities and sprinted for the living room to the TV. That left me alone with Ranger and Stephanie in the dining room. Still reeling from panic, I was panting when I found my eyes registering the guests. Then with a smile, I gingerly sat down.

"So…" I started, looking at Ranger. "How do you like the lamb?"

* * *

_Stephanie_

The rest of the dinner went by relatively easier now. And by easier I mean there was nothing else said for pretty much the rest of it. Everyone lapsed into the basic silence that happens when we eat in our family. Before long, it was time to go and the 3 of us headed out, Adriana and I with leftovers in hand.

"We'll see you next Saturday, sweetie!" Aunt Cassandra told her daughter. "And Ranger? Feel free to come back again."

It wasn't until we reached our respective cars that my cousin opted to speak.

"Uh... so that was an interesting dinner, huh? " Adriana began with a very uncomfortable laugh. "Probably remember it for the rest of your life."

Ranger put a hand on her shoulder and she abruptly shut up but wouldn't look up, until he told her that he wasn't bothered by the dinner at all. Not really. Ana looked up in surprise at that but she relaxed considerably and that made me smile as well.

"Seriously?" My cousin asked.

"Hey, you should be lucky." I added in. "At least he's not afraid to come over due to our grandpa."

Adriana blinked and looked at Ranger then me then back again before she started laughing. All in all, it was a pretty good day.

* * *

And this is it for my 13th chapter! I'm very sorry about the lateness! Life has been annoying and my muse has been uncooperative. But I be back and ready to play. Stay tuned for the 14th chapter for real this time!

Plus if you're reading any of my other stories, I'll do the best I can to update those too!


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